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Movie Nights with the LUMOS RAY Projector

Last year, we got to fix our room. We had the cabinets in the master’s bedroom taken out for more space and for decluttering. We were left with an empty blank wall. Being used to seeing a lot of things in the room, we were contemplating if we should place shelves, or decorate the wall, or add a TV so that we can watch our favorite shows.

We didn’t have any TV in the room, and we used to just watch from our laptops or iPads. We then had this idea of buying a mini projector. We tried one mini projector, but the quality wasn’t really that good. The room needed to be really dark, plus the shows on Netflix were pixelated when using this cheap projector.

Ginger Arboleda with her LUMOS RAY projector

We then came across the LUMOS RAY projector which costs either Php 8999 for the LUMOS RAY and Php 11,999 for the RAY Smart. We were pleasantly surprised with how the LUMOS RAY Projector worked. Okay, you probably are thinking why not just buy a TV with this price. What we love about this projector is that we can bring it anywhere we go. 

Before the pandemic, we used to travel a lot. Now with things easing up, I’m sure that we’ll be able to travel again, so we’ll be bringing the LUMOS RAY projector with us.

If you are a family who loves watching movies and shows, this projector is for you.

Video Clarity

This small device can project an impressive 100 inch screen. Just to share with you, the distance from our projector to the wall now is around 100 inches (2.5 meters). To give you an idea, a 3 meter distance can project the 100 inch screen.

It really can show whatever show you’re watching clearly at 720p HD clear resolution (1080p Blu-Ray Support). It has a Bright 3,000 Lumens making the colors more vivid in darkness (not grainy or washed out). Other projectors are just at 1000 Lumens.

As you can see, we shot the images above at around 4:00 pm in the afternoon, when it was still bright and sunny outside. We had no problem watching, and the video projected was clear.

Plug and Play

To use the device, just plug it in and turn it on. It has a built-in Netflix and Youtube app. Do take note to simply press ‘cancel’  when Netflix asks for an upgrade as the inbuilt version works best with the projector.

The user interface was simple and easy to use, that even our 9 year old understood how to use the device.

Screen Mirroring

You can also open a file, app or video via your mobile device and have it projected. Just open the Air Screen app on the LUMOS RAY and connect via Wi-Fi to mirror your file in your mobile device. Other people use it to play mobile games, use Spotify, or even join Zoom calls over a huge screen while lying in bed.

Sleek and portable

As mentioned, what we love about the LUMOS RAY is that you can just grab it and go! I love how it looks — it’s very sleek and compact. It also has a built-in Dolby Audio so sound is good. But if you’d like to use your own speaker, you can attach it and plug it into your LUMOS RAY.

The LUMOS RAY is again priced at only ₱8,999 and the RAY Smart at ₱11,999 with 1-year local warranty. You can purchase these devices directly from LUMOS Projector via their website at https://www.lumosprojector.ph/MommyGinger. You can order from anywhere in the Philippines, Malaysia or Singapore.

Overall, we’d highly recommend getting this for your bedroom, living room or home theater. We love the experience, and now that we seldom go to movie houses, this is a great option for movie nights with the kids at home!

4 Types of Headphones and Earphones and How to Know Which One Is Right for You

If you like listening to music while working, exercising, or traveling, then you know the importance of having the right audio accessories. Nothing ruins the experience more than a pair of headphones or earphones that produce low-quality sounds.

Fortunately, you can buy headphones online so you can replace your inferior ones with a better pair. Before you make a purchase, however, make sure that you’re getting the type of headphones (or earphones, as the case may be) that suits your listening habits and preferences.

Below, we discuss the four most common types of headphones and earphones to help you choose:

Over-Ear Headphones

If you want the best sound quality, you should definitely get over-ear headphones. Their large size can make them look and feel bulky, but it also allows them to house larger drivers. This, in turn, allows headphones to produce a wider range of sound frequencies—from those smooth, high notes to those deep, thumping bass beats.

Another reason that over-hear headphones produce such great audio output is that the ear cups cover your entire ear. This feature helps isolate sound, creating that “surround” experience. In addition, by covering your entire ear, the cups or pads of your headphones can help increase comfort.

The downside of headphones is that they aren’t as portable. As such, they’re better used at home or at work. This is not to say that you can’t use headphones when traveling, but it can be a little inconvenient to carry them around.

Wearing headphones for hours can also cause a bit of added pressure on your head and make your ears feel warm. If you can, find a pair of headphones with a padded headband; for the ear cups, memory foam is often ideal for added breathability.

On-Ear Headphones

Unlike over-ear headphones, on-ear headphones don’t have ear cups. Rather, they have ear pads that sit on top of your ears. Thus, they don’t offer the same surround-sound experience. This doesn’t mean that over-ear headphones can’t deliver quality audio. The key is to find a model with a large enough driver so you can listen to your favorite songs without losing fidelity.

On the other hand, on-ear headphones are more portable than their over-ear counterparts; they’re also much lighter. Some on-ear headphones even boast foldable styles and come with free carrying cases. As such, they’re better travel companions.

Just manage your expectations regarding ambient sounds, since the partial ear coverage can let some noise get through. For foldable models, be careful when opening and closing them so the arms of the headband don’t snap.

Earbuds

If you’ve bought any kind of mobile phone online or in-store recently, you probably received a free pair of earbuds that you may have mistakenly called earphones. The difference between the two kinds of audio accessories is that earbuds are designed to rest on the concha, the opening in your ear that leads to the ear canal. As such, depending on the default size of the earbuds, you might not get a good fit.

Like on-ear headphones, earbuds also let in ambient noise. This can either be a good or bad thing, depending on the situation. For example, if you’re jogging outside or crossing the road, being able to hear other sounds like car horns is definitely good. However, if you’re trying to listen to your favorite songs while on public transport, the lack of noise cancellation can be a downside.

On the other hand, most earbuds come with a built-in microphone. Thus, they’re perfect for answering calls hands-free. They can also be useful in basic video chats such as when you’re calling loved ones or having an online meeting. What’s more, earbuds are quite cheap. If they get damaged or broken, you easily find replacements without breaking the bank.

Earphones

Last but not least, earphones are audio output accessories that come with multiple rubber or silicone tips that extend into your ear canal. This means you can choose the correct size to ensure that they’re snug and won’t fall off easily. If you like listening to music while exercising, then earphones are your best bet.

Another advantage of earphones over earbuds is that earphones can isolate sounds. Thus, you don’t have to worry too much about ambient noise. Many earphones also come with noise cancellation technology. This helps filter the sounds better, giving you clearer audio even at lower volumes.

Just like over-ear headphones, however, wearing earphones for long periods can cause a bit of discomfort. This can be alleviated by getting the right size of ear tips, although finding the exact size that fits in your ear canal can be challenging.

As you can see, the “right” headphone or earphone is quite subjective. In fact, depending on what kind of listening experience you’re looking for, you might end up getting multiple products! However, if you only have a budget for one, then decide on what you’re going to use most often and then invest in that type of headphone or earphone.

Time to grab this acerpure cool!

Guess what? Acer, the brand that we love for laptops, tablets, and other gadgets has this new lifestyle brand called acerpure and we got the new acerpure cool. Before we jump into our review of this new device, let me introduce acerpure first. acerpure has new products that are focused on consumer electrical products related to air treatment at the first stage. This is in line with acerpure’s commitment to provide professional air quality (since they have been delivering this in the commercial field in Taiwan for many years). This decision to expand their consumer market was at the end of 2020, and it was very timely, since a lot of us would love to have fresh and clean air at home. Acerpure’s value proposition is to bring us a new lifestyle that combines “Smart” and “Freshness”. With these new products from acerpure, we can enjoy ‘’Simple Pure’’ using technology at Every Moment.

acerpure introduces 3 new products: acerpure cozy which is the air circulator. acerpure pro which is the airpurifier and the acerpure cool which is the air circulator and air purifier in one.

acerpure cool review

So we used the acerpure cool and placed it inside our bedroom. Our baby is oftentimes inside this room, so we wanted to have the air purifier placed inside this room to keep her safe.

So the acerpure cool has the True Circulation Fan. It’s my first time to see a fan really rotate that way — it can move side to side and even look up and down. How cool is that? It also has up to 12 meters airflow distance.

For the acerpure air purifier, it has a 4 in 1 HEPA filter which removes PM1.0 and 99.97% particles down to 0.3 microns. It was also tested for airborne bacteria (Escherichia coli) counts in air with an elimination rate up to 99.99%. As for H1N1 (which we all know about), it was also tested for it with an antiviral activity rate up to 99%. The acerpure air purifier also emits negative ions (10 Million) into the air with its Anion Function Auto Run feature.

Do we like the acerpure cool c2?

Yes, definitely and we highly recommend that you get one. Even if you spend Php 15K for this device, we think it’s really worth it. Here’s why…

It’s a space saver. Normally, you’d have a fan and the air purifier as separate devices. Our master’s bedroom is where all of us sleep at night and where the kids nap in the afternoon. We have to bring in Zeeka’s bed, because she wants to stay with us, and her bed takes up so much space. We don’t have a big room and with the fan and the air purifier in the room, there’s hardly any room to walk and move. The acerpure cool just does the job of these 2 devices well without taking too much space.

It gives me peace of mind. We live in a condo unit and obviously, we have no control over what happens in the units of our neighbors nearby. With COVID threatening our health and safety, as a mom, I’m just more comfortable if all of the purifiers are turned on. But of course, we just don’t get any air purifier. With the acerpure cool, we’re really sure that it has been tested against the virus we are scared of (like H1N1 / COVID) and also against particles like dust that I’m super allergic to (yes, I have a bad case of allergic rhinitis). Before having the acerpure, we all got COVID in the family and mind you, we don’t go out. We really think that we probably got it from the building. Having the acerpure cool here at home just gives me and my husband that peace of mind that we have another layer of defense against unseen enemies!

It’s super innovative — I love the circulation fan and the display with the app. In our condo unit, I don’t think air really moves around that much. Sure, we can open the windows but only to a certain extent that air doesn’t really circulate. And we know that this is important so that the air that we breathe is fresh and clean. I also love the display since I know and I am assured of the air quality inside our home.

These are just some of the things that we love about having the acerpure cool c2 here at home.

If you are seriously considering and in the market for an air purifier / circulator, visit the Acer Philippines Facebook Page! acerpure products are available in authorized retailers and online at

https://store.acer.com/en-ph/acerpure

Share with me your experience, too, with acerpure products. Use #AirMadeClean #acerpure #AcerPH Stay safe and healthy!

What Stocks to Buy When you have $100 on GoTrade

I posted on Facebook that I was testing out GoTrade, and a lot of friends responded. GoTrade is an application where I purchase foreign (mostly US) stocks. I made an intro blog post on Gotrade here: Buy Foreign Stocks with GoTrade

Personally, I find it to be more convenient than the other platforms, because of these things:

a. GoTrade allows me to purchase fractional shares. In other platforms, I need to purchase at least 1 share of stock for some popular stocks. But some of these these popular stocks costs hundreds of dollars to just purchase 1 share. With GoTrade, I can buy fractional shares and get in on the action when gains are seen from these stock shares.

b. I love that it’s so easy to cash in. You can cash in using GCASH, a UnionBank Account or a BPI account. I’m sure they will add more soon, but these three options are enough for me.

c. Withdrawing from GoTrade is also very convenient with a very affordable transaction fee of $4. And the money is deposited in a matter of minutes with instant withdrawals.

One question that I was asked by friends when I posted is which stocks did I buy.

I started with depositing $100 right off the bat (I wanted to experiment and test quickly). By the way, please do not take this post as financial advice. I am not a financial advisor or financial planner. I only share what I have experienced and what I am doing with my personal portfolio.

So for that $100, I placed them in these stocks.

  1. TESLA

I was attracted to purchase US stocks because I saw that a lot of vloggers where talking about AMC (during the time I started). Personally though, that time, I really wanted to purchase TESLA stocks. This is how I stumbled upon GoTrade.

So I initially placed $10 on this stock.

I then wanted to test out purchasing other stocks so I researched about it and wanted to place in ETFs. ETFs are exchanged traded funds. ETFs are like mutual funds, but ETFs are bought and sold throughout the day on stock exchanges. ETFs are basically created for individuals who want to mitigate risks, because instead of purchasing just one stock, the ETF helps you by actually investing in different stocks.

I was so excited to see ETFs from Vanguard in GoTrade. Vanguard is a trusted name when it comes to ETFs for most investors. They have different ETFs focusing in different sets of stocks. The ones that I purchased are VTI, VOO and VGT.

Other stock shares that I bought initially are those of the Pharmaceutical company, Moderna and that of a tech company, which is Google (for obvious reasons). I also later on invested in a lot more technology companies (which I will share in a different post soon).

Another segment that I was looking at was REITs or Real Estate Investment Trusts. REITs are basically investing on Real Estate without really owning properties for rent such as commercial spaces, malls, etc. We know that Real Estate investing is nice to have in our portfolio, but while I save up to purchase properties, REITs will do. I’ve been noticing that now, local companies like Robinsons Land and Megaworld are releasing REITs.

In GoTrade, they have different choices of REITs. I personally invested in O or Realty Income, Ares Commercial Real Estate and LTC Properties. Feel free though to research more about these different companies.

So there you have it. So for my $100, these are the companies that I invested in.

Some things to note…

I do dollar cost averaging, so I make it a habit to place a little amount every week if possible. I place around $20 a week at least (as much as possible).

I also check on the stocks that issue out dividends. You can check it on GoTrade by checking the Dividend Yield of the stock.

So that’s it for my answer to what did I purchase with $100 dollars. Hope this article helps.

If you haven’t downloaded GoTrade, you can look for it in the App store or Google playstore. You can use my invitation code to get in.

Use this invitation code so you can use Gotrade! It’s by invitation only 🙂

If you have any questions, feel free to comment on the section below! Have a great day!

Buying A New Drone? What First Time Drone Owners Need to Know

Undoubtedly, drone use can be extremely beneficial to influencers, social media managers, and photographers alike. The ability to capture images from high angles and get a unique shot easily is something that many people once thought wasn’t possible for amateurs. But owning a drone has completely changed how people create and consume content across the world.

You only have to head online to easily find an abundance of drone shots from various sources to see the popularity not only with the artists who use them to create the content but also from the consumer.

YouTube’s chief commercial officer, Robert Kyncl, forecasted that video would account for 90 percent of all internet traffic by 2020, with expenditure on digital video ads expected to climb by 30 per cent between 2015 and 2016. Another interesting figure is that 70% of marketers want to boost their social media video ad budgets in 12 months.

If you are looking to buy a drone to up your photography game, boost your social media images, use it within the realms of your company or business or to simply just have fun with it, you need to know some important details before you purchase.

Where to Buy A Drone

This obviously depends on your location and the availability of retailers in your specific country. It is always a good idea to buy direct from a retailer such as DrDrone.ca.This way; you can ensure you are buying the latest version and have an outlet to buy the latest hardware or accessories as required.

Consider investing in a starter drone and kit to help you get used to using it at first. The last thing you want is to invest a hefty sum of money in a drone to have an accident and be unable to use it without being fully confident in your skills.

Choose a Compact Drone

Drones, much like anything else, can come in many different shapes and sizes. If you are going to be going out and about frequently, you need to invest in a lightweight and company drone that is easy to transport. It is likely when you head out with it you will have other equipment, too and choosing a bigger drone might mean you struggle to carry it where you need it or retrieve it in the event of an issue.

Drone Insurance

Like you would insure your mobile phone, you need to ensure your drone too. Make sure you check the restrictions, if any, regarding areas of usage for repair when using the drone. For example, if your provider limits you to the area you bought the drone for insurance, then damaging your drone outside of this area will void your policy. Make sure the cover you obtain applies to your needs.

Learn The Drone Flying Rules

When you first start using your drone, make sure you know all your locations regulations and laws about drone usage, especially if you plan to travel abroad and use your drone in a different country. 

Each country will have a page online dedicated to drone usage and what is acceptable. But for general advice, some rules can apply for pretty much most places and are a common courtesy for drone users, including;

  • Stay 8km away from airports
  • Fly under 400 feet from the ground
  • Do not fly over government facilities 
  • Do not fly over private properties and residential spaces
  • Only fly in open areas
  • Keep your drone in the one of sight

Register For Any Permits

Different countries have different requirements, and you cannot just buy a drone and take it out to fly. In the Philippines, commercial drone use requires a permit. An operator may not conduct aerial work activities unless they have a valid certificate of authority granted by the Authority.

Avoid falling foul of the law and register your intention to fly a drone, and get the appropriate paperwork to allow you to do so.

Buy Extra Supplies

It can be easy to overlook the extras you might need to use your drone effectively, especially if you bought on impulse. If you are using your drone commercially, you will probably find that you need to purchase supplies to help you prolong your usage when out and about and help you get the most from your new drone. Some packages may include some or all of the following.

Consider buying;

  • Extra batteries
  • Battery Charging pack
  • Carry Case
  • Memory Card
  • Filters
  • Spare propellers
  • Propellor guards
  • Landing gear
  • Car charging kit

You Need To Install Software

You cannot open up your drone and use it. You need to set up the software for the drone, charge the batteries, install the propellers etc. Additionally, you will also need to add the software on your phone from the controller. You will also need to register your drone with the provider to get you up and running.

Practise Makes Perfect

Drone are fragile pieces of technology. When you consider the heights they are typically used at, if they were to come crashing down, it can cause a lot of damage.

These days, drones are super user friendly, and as such most people can pick up the skills pretty quickly. Remember to use your drone in a safe space and remember to follow the rules when practising your skills. Don’t push it too much too soon, and allow yourself to build up the confidence required for a successful drone flight.

Consider undergoing drone flight training to improve your skills and fly with other people, so more than one set of eyes are on the drone, and you can have support in keeping track of your drone until you become more confident.

There is no denying that a drone can be a handy tool for any industry. However, take the time to get to know your new piece of kit before using it and make sure you have the relevant permission and permits to take your drone out into the sky.