ESSENTIAL COVID PROTECTION FOR YOUR CAR + ELECTRONICS ACCESSORIES FROM CATALYST, ANKER AND OWC
Protect your car and accessorize your electronic devices
NOT DRIVING MUCH DURING THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC? YOU MUST READ THIS:
If ever you are not driving your car enough to use a tank of gas in a month or two, you should add a fuel stabilizer to your gas tank to prevent the gas from going bad and eventually causing engine damage, as well as blockages in your car’s fuel system.
To minimize my exposure to COVID-19, I’ve been staying at home. Most of my driving has been for short, infrequent trips to stock up on groceries. Since taking delivery of my new 2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid in August, I’ve mostly been driving using electricity, so recently I contacted Toyota for advice. They recommended that I add an additive called Sta-Bil to my gas tank: www.goldeagle.com/brands/sta-bil/
There are two versions of Sta-Bil for automotive use. Sta-Bil Storage protects vehicles that will not be driven for months at a time. It will stabilize the fuel for up to two years.
Sta-Bil 360 Protection is for vehicles that are driven occasionally. It will stabilize fuel for up to a year, and is optimized for automotive fuel that contains ethanol in addition to gasoline. Each time you refuel, add one ounce per five gallons of gas. Also, keeping your gas tank full if you do not drive very much will minimize the amount of air and damaging water in the tank.
I purchased convenient 10-ounce bottles of Sta-Bil 360 Protection from Amazon. Then I poured the recommended amount into the gas tank of my Toyota and refueled it.
Even though it only requires regular grade gasoline, I refueled with premium grade gas in the hope that it might restore a possibly decreased octane level due to aging gas. I also added some to the tank of my Mazda MX-5 Miata.
INNOVATIVE CATALYST CELLPHONE CASES
I am a fan of Catalyst cellphone cases. On the rare occasions when I’ve dropped my phones, Catalyst cases have always protected them well.
Catalyst’s Vibe Series case for the iPhone 12 features 10-foot (MIL STD 810G) drop protection, raised edges that protect the screen and camera lenses, and a grippy tactical grip.
… but what makes it especially stand out from the competition are its patented rotating mute switch, forward audio projection and the Crux four-point attachment system, for attaching not only the included wrist lanyard but also an available shoulder strap, coiled carabiner, ring stand and more: www.catalystlifestyle.com/products/vibe-series-for-iphone-12-pro-max?variant=33096418525293
RELIABLE ANKER POWER ACCESSORIES
I have trusted Anker power accessories for years, and can honestly say that none have ever failed me. Recently I bought two — one for myself and one to give as a gift, and I asked Anker to send me several more to review.
Especially useful now that the iPhone 12 does not ship with a charger, Anker’s Nano offers 20W max output to quickly charge that iPhone, as well as iPads, Apple Watches and AirPods. Charging an iPhone 12 with one is three times faster, compared to the original 5W charger: us.anker.com/pages/uai2020
Ideal for travel and everyday use, the Anker PowerPort Cube is a tennis ball-sized, cube-shaped power strip with three USB ports and three AC outlets. With overload protection, fire-retardant exterior and tough, coated power cable, it safely detects connected devices and adjusts voltage output to deliver the correct, high-speed charge: www.anker.com/products/variant/powerport-strip-3-with-3-usb-ports/A2763121
The Anker PowerExtend USB-C 3 Capsule is a clever, clutter-reducing, three-sided power strip surge protector with three AC outlets on one side, and two 15W USB-A ports and a 45W, high-speed, PowerIQ 3.0 USB-C port on the other: www.anker.com/products/variant/powerextend-usbc-3-capsule/A9132121
Providing plenty of room to plug in large power blocks, Anker’s PowerExtend 12 Strip has dual surge protectors, overload protection, top-tier flame-retardant casing and a flat plug that fits easily behind furniture: www.anker.com/products/variant/powerextend-12-strip/A9191121
FAST, TOUGH AND MINI-SIZED OWC SSD
Other World Computing (OWC) specializes in worldwide sales and knowledgeable support for the upgrade and expansion of Mac and iOS devices, with their dependable, high quality SSDs, memory, drives, docks, video, audio and much more: www.macsales.com/about
The Envoy Pro Elektron SSD provides pocket-sized, crushproof, dustproof, waterproof, plug-and-play and fast (up to 1011MB/s) USB-C data storage, in an aircraft-grade aluminum housing — for Mac, PC and tablet computers. Available capacities range from 240GB to 2.0TB: eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/ENVPK.5/
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Let’s all put COVID-19 behind us and have a very happy 2021.
It is in that celebratory spirit that I am proud to announce to you the imminent completion of the “AutoMatters & More” website — a project that has been in the works for several years. Eventually I will upload to that site all of my 672 columns to date (and counting), written over nearly 20 years. Mostly staying at home since March and not covering events in person, due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, has finally given me the time that I needed to do that. Stay tuned!
COPYRIGHT © 2020 BY JAN WAGNER – AUTOMATTERS & MORE #672R2
