All posts by joel-dear

Dec 201502

6 Must-Watch Christmas Movies

Joel Dear gadget inspector news

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, and there is no better way to celebrate this joyous season than to have the whole family gather round and watch a festive a film together! With that in mind, we have a few suggestions that we strongly recommend to get you in the Christmas spirit:

Be warned: spoilers may lie ahead.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

In this adaptation of the cherished children's tale by Dr. Seuss, the bitter,green Grinch (played brilliantly by Jim Carrey) comes up with a plan to take Christmas (which he absolutely despises) away from the cheery and festive inhabitants of Whoville (who he equally loathes). His plan may be foiled, however, when he bumps into cute Cindy Lou, who tries to melt his dark and black heart and change his devilish plans to ruin the festive season.

Elf (2003)

This beloved festive comedy is a favourite among many families, and for good reason! This film follows Buddy the elf (Will Ferrell), a human raised by elves, and his experiences with modern-day New York and human culture, whilst on the search for his birth father. The whole family will be chuckling away whilst they watch Buddy struggle with human life.

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

This film is well and truly the definition of a Christmas classic! It's entertaining and message driven, with a truly remarkable performance from James Stewart as George Bailey, a man who is contemplating suicide. By the end has a fresh, new outlook on life, as his neighbours all pitch in and help him get his life back on track. If you're not sobbing into your mince pie by the end of this film, there's something wrong with you!

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

Michael Caine, Gonzo the Great and Kermit the Frog – now these probably weren't what Charles Dickens had in mind when he was writing A Christmas Carol, but that is one of the many reasons to love this warm-hearted take on the classic story. Despite the presence of Muppets, it is to be believed to be one of the more faithful versions of the original tale, and is of course our favourite!

Die Hard (1988)

All John McClane (Bruce Willis) was hoping for was a a quiet and relaxing Christmas, but Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) has other ideas, when he holds the staff (including John's wife) of the Nakatomi headquarters hostage. With no immediate police help, John is forced to take matters into his own hands and try to save his wife from the evil German terrorist. This against-the-odds action is hailed to be one of the greatest Christmas films ever, and for good reason too!

Home Alone (1990)

After mischievous Kevin McCallister (Macauley Culkin) get's into an argument with his family, he's sent to his room. The next morning, the whole family leave for their trip to Paris, but accidentally leave without Kevin! He wakes up to an empty house, all by himself, and soon begins living an eight year old's dream. This dreams is short-lived, however, as he soon realises that two burglars are going to attempt to rob his house on Christmas eve. Left to defend the house on his own, Kevin sets up a host of make shift booby traps around the house to try and stop them..

What are YOUR favourite Christmas movies? Let us know on Twitter!

Dec 201501

Check Out Our Movember Competition Winners!

Joel Dear gadget inspector news

Now that November has ended, the time has come for us to announce the winners of our Movember competition. Throughout the entire month we've been encouraging you lot to grow out your majestic moustaches, and tweet us your fan-tache-tic movember attempts to win prizes while showing your support for a great cause, and you didn't disappoint! We've been inundated with brilliant moustache pics from far and wide, making it really difficult for us to choose the best three. If we could, we'd send you all a moustache-themed prize for being such great sports!

We started by shortlisting our moustache donning competitors before choosing our favourite three, but before we announce our winners, we'd just like to thank everyone for entering once again; you should be so pleased with yourselves for supporting such a worthy cause!

So, in 3rd place, who will be winning this ZAP - Mullet and Tache Set is... @grinnerlynn! We love the arts and craft moustache, and we salute you for that pose!

Congratulations to @crummey15, you're our runner up and the winner of this classy Anchorman Wallet and Moustache Set. We loved your White Goodman style moustache!

And finally, the entrant who stood out to us most and will be winning this fantastic Thabto Moustache Door Mat, is @leeinroyston! Your Double moustache was well and truly spectacular and is deservedly our winner!

To the 6 entrants we've shortlisted - you made cracking attempts, so we thought we'd add your pictures to show our appreciation. Please feel free to enter again next year, you may well end up in the top three!

Congratulations to our lucky winners and thanks to everyone who entered. Keep your eyes peeled for more awesome Gadget Inspector competitions coming soon.

Nov 201526

10 Strange Facts About Thanksgiving

Joel Dear info

Today, America will celebrate their annual Thanksgiving holiday, a custom that is said to have been initiated by a feast shared by a group of early settlers and Native Americans. Here in the UK we tend to be a little clueless on the finer details of these celebrations, so we thought it would be a great idea to share some fun facts about the day with you!

The Annual Turkey Pardon

Every year since 1989, the president of the USA is presented with two turkeys, one of which will be saved from the dinner table by being officially 'pardoned'. Read more about this strange tradition here.

Forks Wouldn't Have Been Used at the First Thanksgiving Feast

The now commonplace eating utensil wouldn't have been present at the first Thanksgiving feast, simply due to the fact that it wasn't invented until 10 years later, and didn't become popular for another 200 years!

They Probably Didn't Have Turkey Either...

While Turkey has become a firm staple of the modern Thanksgiving dinner, evidence suggests that the famous feast which inspired the holiday would have more likely consisted of passenger pigeon and seafood!

Speaking of Which, Americans Eat A LOT of Turkey!

The rough figure is around 46 million of the unlucky birds, more than double those eaten at Christmas!

Black Friday Origins

The day of deals and crazy shoppers was apparently named after it's ability to get business owners 'out of the red' and into positive profits.

There are Actually Two Thanksgivings

Canada celebrate their version on the second Monday in October!

Jingle Bells Was Originally Intended For Thanksgiving!

The famous tune was originally written for Thanksgiving and not Christmas, but was so popular that it kept being played into December and soon caught on as a popular Christmas song.

What do you call a Male Turkey?

Believe it or not, this isn't intended as a joke. Only male turkeys make the recognizable 'gobble' sound, which is why they are referred to as 'Gobblers'.

690 Million Pounds of Turkey?

We've told you how many Turkeys the US consumes each year, but apparently this is how much meat was consumed at it's height - that's roughly the same weight as the population of Singapore!

Arnie Loves Thanksgiving!

We'll leave you with some, errr, 'words of wisdom' from our favourite action star. Schwarzenegger was one quoted as saying 'I love Thanksgiving turkey. It's the only time in Los Angeles that you see natural breasts'. And on that note...

Nov 201523

Deal of the week: Batman Logo Mirror

Joel Dear gifts & gadgets

Every man has dreamt about having their very own Batcave at least once in their life. Who wouldn't? It's the ultimate Man cave! Now, that dream of yours can become a reality! Well, sort of...

This Batman Logo Mirror is the ultimate decorative item for fans of the caped crusader! It's perfect for your long, hard, moody stares at yourself, contemplating how much it would actually cost to become Batman, and practising your best Dark knight impression: " Where is she!".

So, if you're looking to give your regular old room an upgrade, you'll be happy to know that this Batman Logo Mirror is our Deal of the week, and is now just £23.99! What a bargain!

Whether you're a fan of the Dark Knight, or are simply looking for that special accessory to spruce up your home, Bruce Wayne style, this mirror is perfect! Give your home a dose of crime-fighting, villain-bashing high-flying awesomeness!

Nov 201520

Reasons to Get Excited for 'The Force Awakens'

Joel Dear gadget inspector news

The new Star Wars Battlefront game was released in Europe today, which made us even more excited for the release of the new film next month! Here are ten reasons why we're reeeeaaaally looking forward to Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

1. It's Been 10 Whole Years Since the Last Instalment

Revenge of the Sith came out way back in 2005, which means that the latest instalment of our favourite franchise is long overdue! Plus, we get to see brand new material as opposed to a back story, making room for brand new characters in our sci-fi loving hearts!

2. Han and Chewie are Back!

This awesome duo will be back in action in this film, along with many of the other characters from the original trilogy. Princess Leia actress Carrie Fisher also appears in the trailer for the film, although her brother Luke was apparently absent. Don't worry though, Mark Hamill appears on the cast list, which means that we should be seeing more of our favourite Jedi very soon!

3. Return to Practical Effects

Many people had problems with the over-use of computer generated effects in the prequel series, but it looks like the newest film will mark something of a return to the much-loved practical effects of the first films. Although it's sure to contain some modern, digital alterations in addition to these effects, the combination of the two if done right, could make for a highly effective end product.

4. The New Director is a Lifelong Fan

While it would be ridiculous to disregard what George Lucas has achieved with his creation over the years, it was clear that the franchise needed a fresh injection of talent to get it back on its feet again. J.J Abrams will not only bring a new approach to the beloved series, but will also ensure that it's treated with great care, thanks to the fact that he is a lifelong fan off the movies himself!

5. Expanding the Star Wars Universe

As I mentioned in point 1, it's been a long time since we've seen new characters and locations, but the overall reboot will also contain spin-off films which tell untold stories of the Star Wars universe. This means that the new film will be getting us in the mood for a whole host of new Star Wars stories! The first of these films will be Rouge One: A Star Wars Story, and will star Hannibal and Casino Royale star Mads Mikkelsen!

6. John Williams' Score

The composer is back on board to give us more of the iconic Star Wars music that we all know and love!

7. The new Lightsaber

While the new, mysterious crossguard lighsaber has caused some controversy amongst fans since the trailer was released, we honestly can't wait to see it in action!

8. Gwendoline Christie as Captain Phasma

As avid Thrones fans, we're super excited to see the Brienne of Tarth actress in a new and wildly different role. Since pictures were first released of her wearing the silver Captain Phasma suit, we've been wondering what role this new antagonist will have to play in the Star Wars story.

9. Cute Robots

R2-D2 and C-3PO are two of the most iconic and well loved characters of the franchise, so it only seemed right to add a brand new addition to the droid family in the newest film! The best part about loveable new robot BB-8, is that it is actually real! The technology was shown off at the Star Wars Celebration, where JJ Abrams invited the droid on stage to the amazement of the audience.

10. The Mystery of a New Plot

The final reason we're so excited for the new film, is simply due to the fact that we know so little about it! Although the names of many new and returning characters have been released, along with several trailers, we know virtually nothing about the new plot (a rare thing in cinema these days). Unless you've been trawling fan sites for info, most of the new content should be a (hopefully) pleasant surprise for all of us!