Never get lost in a parking lot again with the ZUS Smart USB Charger & Car Finder

 ** A Geek Daddy received the featured product for free to review **

Don't you hate it when you return to a parking lot where you've left your car and can't remember exactly where it is?  It happened to me just the other day.  I'd spent all day in a courthouse and when getting ready to head home for the day where my car was parked completely slipped my mind.  Fortunately, I'd charged my phone on the drive there that morning with the ZUS Smart USB Charger & Car Finder so it just took me a quick few seconds to find my vehicle versus spending a lot of time walking around the parking lot looking for it.

My professional career and parenting responsibilities always have me on the go and while I'm running around my iPhone is always close at hand helping keep me connected and organized throughout the day.  So being able to charge my phone as I'm driving from here to there is very important to me.  With that in mind, I appreciate how the ZUS USB Charger easily plugs into my car electrical port and can charge two devices at once lightening fast. ZUS is able to do this because its equipped with advanced smart device detection technology.  This technology is able to detect what device you've plugged into it so that it can deliver the  maximum amp output accepted by that particular device allowing it to be charged at its fastest speed.  By identifying devices and being able to charge them at their maximum amp output, the ZUS Smart Charger is able to recharge devices faster than normal car chargers and it can do this with two items at once since it is equipped with multiple USB plug ins.

The feature I really like about this product though is its Car Finder service.  Download a free app for your phone and sync it to your ZUS.  When you've reached a destination and turned off your car open up the app to record your location.  Leave the app running in the background while you are away from your vehicle.  When it is time to return to your car access the app and you can utilize a compass that identifies the distance and direction you need to travel to reach your vehicle. This is really handy when you know the general vicinity your car may be but not specifically where it is at.  Because the compass feature works through a bluetooth connection with the ZUS, you also don't have to worry about the app not working if your phone can't get a signal or doesn't have wi-fi access.

If you don't remember the parking lot or maybe even the street or block that you may have parked on the compass feature probably isn't going to do much to help you out.  Fortunately, the ZUS also has a handy map application to lead you back to your vehicle.  This map show both where you are at and where your car is located simultaneous. This option though does require a data signal or wi-fi coverage in order for your phone to generate a map.

These are some screen shots of my actually walking back to my car while using the ZUS app.  The app shows the direction I am walking in and highlights the location of my car within a street map of the area.

As I am approaching the vehicle the app notes the distance from the vehicle until it eventually states "your car is nearby" when you get within a few feet of it.  A big truck has parked next to me obstructing the view of my car so I very easily could have walked right past it without using this app.

One thing you need to remember though is the app needs to stay open once you've arrived at your destination and recorded the location.  It can be minimized and running in the background but if you close the app your car's location is deleted.  You'll find yourself with a message informing you that you need to sync the app with the ZUS located within your car but it won't let you do that remotely.  So just remember if you close that app after you've left your car you'll be out of luck trying to use it to find the vehicle later.  Once you get the hang of using this service though remembering to keep the app open really isn't that big of a deal.

In addition to being useful, the ZUS Smart USB Charger & Car Finder is also very durably built. ZUS is the only car charger to meet US Military MIL-STD-810G High Temperature Standard. It is crafted from the highest grade German Bayer PC/ABS with all metal parts coated in Titanium in order to work in temperatures up to 100°C/212°F.  The ZUS was also designed with a special cooling system that results in 35% less heat because that expands the device's lifespan.  I had never really particularly though about a USB Charger being high-tech but the ZUS certainly fits that description perfectly.

You can pick up your very own ZUS Smart USB Charger & Car Finder at Amazon.com. To find out more about the ZUS Smart USB Charger & Car Finder please CLICK HERE.

Dora Reunites With Boots, Backpack & Her Rainforest Friends in a Special Episode on Nickelodeon

It was a little disheartening last year to see Dora the Explorer grow up after all of the hours our family had spent watching her adventures on television as our kids grew through their preschool years.  Just as our kids grew up and moved on through life, Nickelodeon decided it was time to expand upon Dora's adventures through a spin-off television series called Dora & Friends: Into the City.  In this new series Dora gave her best friend Boots the boot and left the rain forest to embark on new adventures in the big city with a brand new group of friends.  Instead of her dependable Backpack and paper Map, Dora now uses a magical charm bracelet and a smartphone to solve puzzles and get out of jams during her adventures.  Instead of cartoonish animal sidekicks like Benny, Isa and Tico, Dora has some human counterparts from her Playa Verde school that include Kate who is fond of drama, music loving Emma, bookworm Naiya, and soccer playing Pablo.  Kids grow up and I can see how it was time for Dora to move on.

As Dora and Friends: Into the City begins its second season, Nickelodeon is incorporating into the show that Dora hasn't forgotten about her old amigos.  Our family had a chance to pre-screen the first of three special episodes that will air throughout the season which reunite Dora with Boots, Backpack and her rainforest friends from Dora the Explorer within the new show before the episode was broadcast on Nickelodeon.  In the episode "Return to the Rainforest", Boots arrives at Dora's new home for a visit.  Unfortunately, he lost Backpack and Map on the way -- so Dora and her new gang of friends head to the rainforest with Boots to search for them.  Turns out Swiper swiped them and it takes Dora's new friends working with Benny, Isa and Tico to get them back.

It was a bit nostalgic watching this episode with my twins that are now first graders who like Dora have grown up and moved past Dora the Explorer but still have cherished memories of enjoying that show during their preschool years.  Our family really enjoyed taking a half hour to go back in time and enjoy an adventure with these beloved characters and see how they've fared as Dora has moved on with her life in the big city.  If your kids grew up watching Dora the Explorer this is a fun episode that provides a nice connection bridging the two series together and to be honest provides some closure to move on from the original show.  You could almost treat this episode as a nice series finale to Dora the Explorer if you wanted to look at it that way.

The problem with Dora & Friends: Into the City is that it doesn't realize who its audience is so in trying to appeal to children from preschool through elementary school it really isn't that appealing to any of these kids. My kids will watch part of a Dora & Friends episode but lose interest because they say it is too babyish while some of the content is obviously too advanced and has too mature of of a pre-teen twist to it to be a good fit for younger preschool viewers.  I've found the last few years from monitoring my children's television viewing that there really is a real gap in quality programming for the kindergarten to third grade age group that Dora & Friends could really fill and be successful with. The brand already has a base of preschoolers and their parents who would readily transition to the show.  Yet the show seems to want to replace Dora the Explorer catering to a preschool audience  trying to hold onto that demographic for as long as they can rather than expand to cater to a new age group.  To be honest, as a parent I just haven't been that impressed with this new series and Dora & Friends isn't a show that my 6 year old twins normally request to see.  It will be interesting to see if this new series follows the lead of its main character and begins to develop into a mature product for a slightly older children's audience or it continues to flounder hanging onto the brand's former glory with the preschool crowd.

Despite my overall criticism of the new Dora series, "Return to the Rainforest" was well done in meshing the two cast of characters together.  My kids enjoyed seeing Boots, Benny, Isa and Tico again and watching them interact with a grown up version of Dora.  They also really enjoyed singing along with Kate, Emma, Naiya, and Pablo.  My daughter also thought it was awesome that one of Dora's new schoolmates was able to sew and used that skill to repair a damaged Backpack with no help from a parent.  So my kids laughed, they sang, they thanked me for sharing this episode of Dora & Friends with them.

This first special, “Return to the Rainforest,” premieres Friday, Sept. 18, at 12:30 p.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon with the remaining episodes rolling out later this year. In the later specials, Dora treks to Rainbow Rock with Boots; saves the show at an enchanted night circus; and even comes to Swiper’s rescue.  It will be interesting to see if the Dora the Explorer characters continue to be charming in the future episodes as they interact with Dora's more mature new friends or if this meshing of the two shows just becomes a bit tired making viewers weary of them. 

It does appear as if the producers at Nickelodeon are tilting the new series towards being geared now towards preschool audiences as Dora and Friends: Into the City! specials will each feature exclusive multiplatform content which includes a big focus on using the NickJr website and the launch of a brand-new Dora app specifically for preschoolers. The Dora Back to the Rainforest app will allow kids to play and learn as they travel to the rainforest to help Dora and Boots find Backpack and return him safely home. Along the way, kids will encounter story elements and characters from all three of the special episodes, earn and collect charms for Dora’s bracelet and play min-games that help Dora and her friends complete their journey. The app will be available soon on iOS and Android.

For more information, visit nickjr.com/dora-and-friends