The Frugal Guy: Telescopic Lens for Smart Phones

Hey again everybody,

This week I'm reviewing a telescopic lens I received from Wolf Tamir.  I received the product from them through Tomoson.com.  I've received a few items from Tomoson so check out the site if you're looking to get your own free products to try. This is my first product from Wolf Tamir, but you can check them out on Amazon by click here. They're a new company (relatively speaking) so if you buy anything from them that you like, be sure to give them good reviews!  Right now it looks like this is the only product they sell, but keep an eye out for more from them.

First of all, I'm not a photographer but I love taking pictures.  Can't say I'm particularly good, but I will say that I find it quite annoying when I want to zoom in on something and my camera can't capture what I want clearly.  This product solves that issue successfully, so there's no need to miss a mortgage payment to purchase a high-quality camera.

This came in a nice little package and includes simple instructions for how to use.  It also comes with a lens cloth and carry bag for the telescope.

I have a Samsung Galaxy J7, and this fits just fine on my phone.  The description on Amazon says that it fits most phones (2 to 3.5 inches) and the second picture above is the clip that goes onto your phone.  I tried with my case and it goes on but the telescope doesn't connect right so this product works best if you take your phone case off. Since this comes with instructions I won't go into details about how to use it, but there's a brief video below on how to adjust the phone clip.

I was able to fully assemble it the first time in about 5 minutes (faster the second time after I took off the case) so it's not difficult to put together. This is great if you're going some place and had to assemble it quickly. However, since there is more than one part, this probably works best if you're going someplace that you know you will need it, as opposed to just taking it out everywhere you go.

It also comes with a tripod that stood up fine for me under the weight of my phone and the telescope. The tripod is pretty essential in my opinion because when you have a long distance shot/zoom activated, movement can make the whole thing come out a blur.  This may also hinder use if you're on the go, but if you're taking pictures from a stationary position this will be perfect. Taking pictures of a flock of chimera will work great, but riding a chimera while trying to take a picture will likely result in failure. Note:  this might also be affected by the type of phone you have, so keep that in mind (Galaxy J7 isn't the best phone).

As far as how the pictures actually turn out, the lens did not seem to detract any of the quality of the photo (it also didn't add any). This is just pure zoom. This is key because usually zooming in causes the quality to degrade.

This is my camera with no zoom, taking a picture of the far wall in our house (ignore the mess)

This is my camera with the zoom as far as it will go (I'm standing in the same position)

Picture with the telescope attached, and my phone camera at zero zoom (same standing position)

Picture with the telescope attached and my phone camera at full zoom (same standing position)

As you can see it's a pretty close zoom and keeps good quality (as good as a J7 can get at least).  The black ring on the first telescope picture is because I didn't have the lens as snug as it could be.

So if you're looking for a great way to take long distance photos without buying an expensive camera, this is definitely a good pick for you.  Check out this product on amazon by clicking here.  Let me know of any questions.  As always, thanks for reading! Stay safe out there.

The Frugal Guy: Nursing Support (Boppy) Pillow

Hey Everybody. Today I'm discussing a wonderful invention that I once though was a waste of money. It's technically called a Nursing Support Pillow, but most people refer to them as boppy pillows (can't tell you why). I received this particular product for free (to test and review) from Asani (and MLC Distribution). Asani is the same company that was gracious enough to allow me to test their segmented glass containers for food.  A link to that blog is here.

As some of you may know, I recently welcomed my first child (I'll be putting up pictures soon!) into the world. My wife Kay mentioned she wanted to get one of these boppy pillows, but I was hesitant because I didn't see the benefit. Looking at the pillow, it just looks like a horseshoe and I didn't quite understand how it would be used or why it should be used (especially for the hefty price most companies charge for them).

Boy have my eyes been opened.

Though it's technically made for nursing, and Kay has used it a few times for that reason, we've both discovered that it works far better as a nap time pillow for our son. If he's fussy or wide awake, laying him on this pillow works like a charm to soothe him.

This particular pillow is the right amount of fluffy and gives to the touch just enough to keep little Paul as comfortable as he wants to be. The cover is extremely soft. In fact, when we first received the product we thought the cover was a part of the pillow. We soon realized the cover had a zipper and easily comes off for washing, but if someone told us it had no cover we would have believed them.  The cover is made from bamboo, which I'm all about as it's one of the better fabrics to use (in regards to human health and the health of the planet).  Because it's bamboo, it's also naturally antibacterial, so for me it's a miracle material and I will likely soon look into buying bamboo clothing as well.

Since the cover slips right off it's easy for washing.  We let it dry by air, but I don't think the product page on Amazon says if it should be air or machine dried. A few of the cover's threads are starting to come out, so hopefully that doesn't become a problem.

As mentioned above, the interior pillow is also very soft, but the stuffing has already started coming out of ours.  It hasn't affected the softness or integrity of the pillow or anything yet, so I still like this product, but if it continues to tear it may present a larger problem. We should be able to fix with a needle and thread, though I'm not sure why it started ripping since we haven't washed or roughly handled the pillow yet.

Overall I'd give this 5 stars for comfort. If there was a rating for environmental/hygiene, I would give it a 4 or 5 for that as well.  If you're in the market for a heavenly soft pillow for nursing, click here to buy this from Amazon now!

NOTE:  if you're also new to the whole parenting thing, DO NOT use this pillow as a substitute for crib sleeping. It is not safe for the infant to sleep on this unattended, and all naps our son takes on this are beside an awake parent to ensure his safety.  I believe they can be dangerous because the infant can slide down into the hole and suffocate.