More 2013 gadgets worth mentioning

Inspection light

Energizer’s new hard case inspection light is 88-percent brighter than previous models and is built with a rugged body.

It’s equipped with a shatterproof lens, which is water and impact resistant up to about a 20 foot drop, and it works on just two AAA batteries (included).

The light beam distance is an amazing — 181.5 feet (55 meters) — and can shine for up to eight hours. Of course, that’s with the company’s Energizer Max alkaline batteries.

In a somewhat related note: Energizer Ultimate Lithium batteries (AA and AAA) will now hold power for up to 20 years when not in use.

Sounds great. I’ll get back to you on my findings in 19 years.

Details: $24.99, www.energizer.com

Portable subwoofer

The Twelve South company is known for making cool gadgets to pair with Apple products.

I make the Apple reference simply because Twelve South puts in a great effort to make their devices, which work great, look so similar to Apple products that you would think they are produced by the tech giant.

This time it’s the re-mastered software for the BassJump 2 portable subwoofer for MacBook.

After turning up the sound on your computer’s built-in speakers, you’ll never say to yourself that they really rock the house. But when you combine the speakers with the subwoofer you might be able to state that claim.

The device expands what the internal speakers produce to add both low and mid frequencies to form a complete sound system.

The software is refined to work with the new OSX Maverick (10.9) operating system and includes automatic headphone detection and a refreshed Retina-ready interface.

Cosmetically, the Bass Jump is designed with silver/gunmetal finish to replicate the finish on most Apple computers.

Details: $69.99, www.twelvesouth.com

Flexible, hands-free stand

Octa’s Tablet Tail Monkey Kit has a flexible arm to hold an iPad or any other tablet or e-reader in place.

The arm is a flexible stand to position at most any angle and won’t drop your device because it attaches with a vacuum-pump system with great suction power.

There’s a suction cup, which you pump the air out of to create the seal. To release it just pull on the tabs on the side, disconnecting the device.

Position the flexible arm to whatever position is needed or as the company says, “wrapped, curled or tucked” in any angle shape or situation for hands-free use.

Details: $69.99, www.octa.com

Portable, rechargable power

Ventev, a leader in portable charging accessories, has launched the multi-function powerdash r900 charger.

It functions as a portable battery with its internal rapid charging 900mAh battery and charges your device with your own cable plugged into the built-in USB port.

The r900 is designed to plug into your vehicle’s DC (cigarette lighter) port for charging while also powering your device if needed.

Tablets and other power hungry devices up to 2.1A can charge while in the vehicle’s port and up to 1.0A on the portable battery.

Details: $24.95, www.ventev.com

Charging pad

RAVPower’s new Qi Wireless Charging pad will give you a wireless charge as long as your tablet or phone is Qi compatible

For those who have no idea what Qi charging is, it is a standard developed for specific devices to charge wirelessly. To get the charge, you just place your Qi device on top of the Qi charger and the charging starts.

This new charger has an internal 4800mAh battery and works devices such as the Google Nexus 4, HTC Droid DNA and many others.

An AC adapter and USB charging cable is included.

If your device isn’t equipped with Qi technology, there are many Qi-compatible covers available for different phones and tablets.

A quick Internet search found a Qi charging case for an iPhone 5 for $16.99.

Details: $39.99, www.ravpower.com