Flipping through the Manual: Fresh flasks, cold-brew coffee, tools you can wear

By Brandon Widder September 5, 2015

Burned out on apps, keys and screens? Improve your analog life this weekend! Digital Trends’ brother site The Manual exists to give men straight-up advice, from unspoken suit rules you need to know, to the latest in fashion, food, drink, travel, grooming and culture. Here are a few of our favorite stories to appear on The Manual lately.

Kole: A fresh new take on flask design

Kole Flask — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Kole flask is a complete departure from the tired old hip flask design. Instead of the curved but not-quite-pocket-friendly form that you’re used to seeing, Kole is boldly and unapologetically cylindrical.

Read the full story on The Manual

Upgrade your breakfast: Make sausage at home

Daniel Peter Ronneberg/Shutterstock — Daniel Peter Ronneberg/Shutterstock Image used with permission by copyright holder

Sausages are always good, and knowing how to make sausage yourself is a glorious power. Wield it responsibly.

Read the full story on The Manual

Cold Brew Kitchen: A one-stop coffee shop

Cold Brew 2 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Oregon-based Cold Brew Kitchen offers everything you need for cold brewed coffee.

Read the full story on The Manual

Micro Guide: Tel Aviv

Dance60/Shutterstock — Dance60/Shutterstock Image used with permission by copyright holder

Lose yourself in this Middle Eastern city with its vibrant, beachside setting.

Read the full story on The Manual

Alpha Industries teams up with Ben Sherman on bomber jacket collaboration

Sherman 2 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Heritage outerwear brand Alpha Industries has teamed up with Ben Sherman to re-create the MA-1 Bomber Flight Jacket.

Read the full story on The Manual

Meet the Leatherman Tread, the wearable toolbox for your wrist

Leatherman Tread — Image used with permission by copyright holder

High-tech smartwatches and connected wearables might currently be all the rage, but the Leatherman Tread affords your wrist some physical functionality you simply can’t find elsewhere. It offers a total of 29 tools, ranging from bottle openers to hexes.

Read the full story on The Manual

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Former Digital Trends Contributor

Brandon Widder is a multimedia journalist and a staff writer for Digital Trends where he covers technology news, how-to…

Smart Home

The 6 best smart displays for Alexa and Google Home in 2024

Nest Hub Max Hands-On Review

If you're looking for a way to control all your smart home devices, adding a smart display to your lineup is a great option. Not only do these gadgets make it easy to activate smart lights, smart thermostats, or smart cameras, but you can access a wide range of apps with them -- including Netflix, Spotify, YouTube, and other popular software.

Shopping for a smart display for Alexa or Google Home is a bit more challenging than you'd expect, as so many of the products share overlapping specs. And if you're entirely new to the world of smart homes, you'll have to choose between Google Home and Amazon Alexa as your central smart home platform. Once you've done that, things are a bit easier to manage.

Audio / Video

The best bone conduction headphones for 2024

A person wearing Shokz OpenRun bone conduction headphones.

Bone conduction headphones have taken the world by storm, and we’re all about this relatively new and exciting audiio technology. If you’ve never seen one of these headsets in the wild, the idea is relatively simple: A series of sound waves are generated by a set of conductors that rest along your jawbone. These waves create vibrations throughout the skull and jaw that our inner ears register as sound.

With traditional headphones and earbuds, sound waves need to pass by our eardrums first, before arriving at the inner ear. This is why bone conduction headphones are ideal for commuters, gym-goers, and loud workplaces. The sounds of your immediate listening environment will still be audible (because your ears are technically headphone-free), but you’ll still be able to enjoy music and podcasts via the vibrations in your cranium. Similarly, open-ear earbuds and headphones are also a good choice for letting in outside sound, but they're not to be confused with bone conduction.

Smart Home

The 4 best smart thermostats in 2024

A person operating the Google Nest thermostat.

A lot of folks may feel that a smart thermostat device is just a gimmick for the lazy that lets you control it remotely, but there are actually quite a lot of good things when it comes to smart thermostats. Depending on which model you buy and how much money you spend, there can be some significant savings, especially if you spring for the kind that learns your patterns and adjusts the temperature to eat up less electricity. Some thermostats even know what time of day electricity is expensive and adjust to use less of it to help bring your costs down.

As such, if you rely heavily on your HVAC, then having a smart thermostat can save you money and add a ton of convenience, even if you don't go for one of the smarter ones. Just knowing your energy usage over time can help you adjust and spend less money while also being a bit more eco-friendly. While there are a ton of options, we've collected four of our favorites below across various budgets and features, so be sure to check things out thoroughly and be sure a smart thermostat supports your HVAC system before taking the plunge.
The Best Smart Thermostats in 2024