05JAN2025: No jangle and no jitters
The first Hiro Report giveaway, EDC and outdoors gear, journaling and to-do apps, a keyboard, and more!
Happy New Year, everyone!
Like much of the rest of the tech world, I’ll be spending a lot of the week ahead poring over CES Coverage to see what new fun gadgets we’ll have to play with or lust over during the next year or so.
In the meantime, I’ve been really enjoying Mere Civilian’s write-up on getting started with 3D printing (featuring the Bambulab A1*), and I’ve been going down various rabbit holes after watching architect DamiLee’s excellent video on the Kowloon Walled City.
I’m also thrilled that the great folks at Wimp Decaf are back in action after Hurricane Helene forced them to pause operations for a bit. I’ve ordered a big restock for myself and an extra bag of beans to give away to a Hiro Report subscriber! (Details at the bottom of this email.) This is not in any way sponsored—I just like supporting good people making delicious coffee. Go show them some love if you’re looking to cut back on the jitters and anxiety vibes this year.
On to the good stuff!
• 🔑 Quiet Carry Q3 - I hate having keys jangling around in my pocket, so I was thrilled when I found the Q3 a few years back. It’s a very small slab of titanium that holds your keys together in its sleek embrace, along with either a small utility blade or multitool insert. It keeps all my stuff together, no jangle, and looks and feels nice. One of my favorite pieces of my EDC. That said, if you want something even more lightweight, check out OrbitKey’s offering*.
• ⛺ Kanvas 001 - OK, before I start, let me just get this out of the way: This thing costs £12,500. Phew, okay, it feels good to have that off my chest. With that done, I can tell you that this badass elevated camping tent, made with high-tech materials, was inspired by the design of the Apollo lunar lander, and I desperately want one. LOOK AT IT.
• 📝 Day One - I’ve been using this fantastic journaling app off and on for over a decade and recently started putting more time into it again. It features a beautiful Apple-native design, end-to-end encryption, and lets you document your life with text, photos, videos, voice notes, and other file attachments. It also integrates nicely with Apple’s new journaling prompt APIs and lets you easily import and export all of your entries in convenient formats, including JSON. If you’re thinking about taking up journaling in the new year, I definitely recommend giving it a go.
• ⌨️ 8BitDo Retro Keyboard - Xbox Edition - 8BitDo’s Nintendo and Famicom-themed* mechanical keyboards have been a smash hit, and now they’re back with a killer-looking translucent green Xbox version. Beyond just nailing the aesthetics, the keyboard comes with all manner of handy features for keeb nerds. Honestly, it’s a little over the top for me, but I love that they’re doing this.
• ☑️ Godspeed - Just when I think I’ve tried every to-do list app imaginable, I find some great, attractive new one to consider. This week, thanks to Erlend, I’m using Godspeed. It’s got a pleasant, minimalist design on top of a feature-rich system. The app’s self-proclaimed focus is on speed of entry, making everything just a keystroke away and hyper-responsive. Personally, I appreciate it having both speedy sync and full offline support, collaborative lists, labels, and Markdown support.
*Anything with an asterisk is an Amazon Affiliate link that may earn the newsletter a small commission at no cost to you if you buy something.
That’s it for this week! Wishing everyone an energizing start to the new year!
Hey friend, how was this issue?