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Jeff Butts

Jeff Butts is a seasoned tech aficionado with deep roots in the Apple ecosystem. Starting his journey in the early 1980s by experimenting with hardware, Jeff has always been driven by a desire to get the most out of technological devices. His expertise has led him to prominent roles in the industry, including a nearly three-year stint as a Reporter at AppAdvice and an impressive seven-year tenure as a Writer/Editor for Byrnes Publishing, LLC. More recently, Jeff lent his technical insights to HotHardware, Inc. as a Tech Editor. With his extensive experience and unwavering commitment to providing valuable content, Jeff continues to be a trusted voice for readers keen on Apple products and innovations.

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Caviar Melts Down Tesla Model 3 to Make iPhone 13 Pro

Caviar, a Russian luxury boutique, is at it again. Their latest product, after the Tyrannosaurus rex iPhone, involves melting down a Tesla Model 3. The company has taken one of the electric cars, melted it down, and used the materials to craft a new iPhone 13 Pro design, the iPhone 13 Tesla Electro. The body is manufactured from titanium with black PVD coating, and the central aluminum insert comes from the Tesla Model 3. An artistic collage, etched into the aluminum insert, features a portrait of Elon Musk, the outline of an electric car, and the Tesla Motors logo. This run is limited to 99 pieces, and you can choose either an iPhone 13 Pro or an iPhone 13 Pro Max with any memory configuration. It’ll set you back $6,760. If you’d prefer to spend a bit less, you could also get an Elon Musk bust made from the same materials, for $3,220.

MobyFox Apple Watch Bands Black Friday Sale

MobyFox, which holds official licenses to just about every geek favorite brand you can imagine, has a site-wide sale. Using the promo code “BF2021,” you can score 20% off any Apple Watch band plus get free shipping. You’ll find officially-licensed Star Wars, Harry Potter, Marvel Comics, and DC Comics watch bands, plus plenty more. The company also features Hello Kitty, Power Puff Girls, Stranger Things, Arsenal, and Willy Wonka. There’s plenty more, so check it out for yourself. The nicest thing about MobyFox isn’t just the amount of geekery you can find. Their Watch bands all come with connectors for all series and sizes of Apple Watch, along with 22mm pins for many Android smart watches. On top of that, they provide a number of free Watch faces to match your chosen band. I’m looking forward to the Beskar Armor band, from The Mandalorian, that I’ve got coming my way.

Build a DIY Raspberry Pi Magic Mirror

Forget about a magic mirror that tells you what you want to hear. This DIY Raspberry Pi magic mirror can update you on the news and weather while you prepare for your day. All3DP‘s Jackson O’Connell has just published an excellent walkthrough on building your own smart, or magic, mirror using Raspberry Pi, common building materials, and a code repository that’s just waiting for you to make the most of it. It’s hands-down one of the coolest and most useful Raspberry Pi DIY projects I’ve come across.

Roomba Delivers On Its Promise to End Pet Poo Disasters

We’ve seen the videos, those tragic tales of robot vacuum cleaners leaving a trail of puppy poop behind. For all of their AI technology, they simply don’t recognize one fact. Some messes just won’t vacuum up neatly. Your robotic cleaning device ends up doing more harm than good. Roomba maker iRobot says they’ve nipped the problem in the bud. A writer at Daily Paws put this to the test. In her testing, the latest Roomba j7+ really does have the digital smarts to avoid pet messes.

I came home late from work one night to see that my elderly Chihuahua had missed the wee pad by a good bit and left her own dollop of poop on my kitchen floor. I had scheduled the Roomba for a run that was set to begin in a few minutes, so instead of cleaning up the accident myself, I decided to see what the j7+ would do.

It expertly avoided my pup’s poop. I was absolutely in awe. Once again, after the clean, the iRobot app asked me if this was a temporary obstacle, and I confirmed.

Enjoy an Ice Cream Flavor-Inspired iPhone Case

One lifestyle label has decided to take inspiration from popular ice cream flavors for its latest iPhone cases. Urban Sophistication is a clothing and accessory boutique. It “reinterprets everyday objects to offer a unique experience of the ordinary altogether creating a portrait of us”. The boutique’s latest product announcement consists of five new Puffer cases. Different ice cream flavors inspire each of the cases in the new “Flavors” drop. You can choose from Bubblegum, Frozen Sun, Green Tea, Peach Sorbet and Cotton Candy. Urban Sophistication first thought up the Puffer case after photoshopping a picture of a puffer jacket onto an iPhone case. The idea proved so popular that Urban Sophistication designed a new line of cases incorporating the puffiness of the jacket. Dua Lipa, Rosalia, Madelaine Petsch and J Balvin have helped popularize the Puffer cases. These cases fit all models of iPhone 11, iPhone 12, and iPhone 13.

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