Best of SCS

5 Cool, Creative Camping Trailers

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Spot Cool Stuff is a huge fan of glamping. The word is a conjunctive of “glamorous” and “camping” and can describe pretty much any travel experience that is more luxurious than staying in a typical tent but more outdoorsy than an ordinary hotel. A glamping experience might involve sleeping in a portable treehouse, staying in a human-sized bird nest, making an espresso in the middle of nowhere—or touring in a cool camping trailer.

The number of unusual, creatively-designed campers currently on the market is truly amazing. Clearly neither the upward trend in road traffic or fuel prices are deterring some people from taking a mini-home with them on an adventure. Here’s our rundown of five especially cool caravan camping trailers:

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The Google Nexus 7 vs Kindle Fire

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It seems that nearly every large electronics company is getting into the tablet computer business. So no surprise that Google is too. The company recently announced its Google Nexus 7, a tablet that takes direct at Amazon’s Kindle Fire.

Like the Fire, the Nexus 7 is designed primarily to read eBooks and watch videos. Like the Fire, the Nexus 7 has a 7-inch screen. And both tablets (when configured with 8GB internal memory) sell for exactly the same price: $199.

So which tablet is better? Our review comparison:

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A Review of Bora Bora’s Best Resorts

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Bora Bora has only 29 square kilometers of land. Yet, incredibly, the French Polynesian island has 9 outstandingly cool-looking luxury resorts. That gives Bora Bora a OCLR/KM (outstandingly cool-looking luxury resorts per square kilometer) value of .31, which is surely the highest of any island in the world.

Each of Bora Bora’s nine outstandingly cool-looking luxury resorts has its merits. A stay at each is also somewhere between expensive and exorbitant, especially once you account for the cost of food, activities and local transportation, all of which is pricey even before tacking on the 14% national tax. That makes choosing the optimum resort key. And, of course, if you are staying for your honeymoon you want to get it right.

For this overview, we’re listing Bora Bora’s OCLRs in the order of overall resort quality as we judge it. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the first resort on our list is the best fit with what you are seeking for your particular trip. Also, while reading our comparison, keep in mind that all these resorts have overwater bungalows. All have service that exceeds that of a typical luxury hotel. And all are set in stunning locations, Bora Bora offering nothing but. In those ways, you can’t go wrong with any of these choices:

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Canon EOS 5D Mark III vs Mark II

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For years now, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II has been a favorite mid-range digital SLR among serious photographers. The workhorse of a camera took professional-quality images and offered a huge feature set—and did so for a relatively low price.

Then, two things happened: First, Canon came out with an updated version of the Mark II—the EOS 5D Mark III. Second, Canon reduced the price of the Mark II by $500.

Both the 5D Mark II and 5D Mark III are, inarguably, excellent full-feature SLR cameras. But now that there’s a serious 5D choice, which of the two is the better option for you? Spot Cool Stuff takes a look at the advantages of each camera:

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The Best Niche Dating Websites

We previously wrote a review comparing Match, eHarmony and the best dating websites. But depending on who you are—and what you are looking for in a potential partner—you might be better off on a dating website that targets a particular niche. There are a huge number of such sites. We’ve scoured them all (or, at least most of them), found our favorites and arranged them in these categories:

Seniors and Baby Boomers
Nationalities
Religions
Those looking for a fling
Professions and lifestyle
Personal interests
Odd and unusual

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Best Tablet Computers for Travel

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There are few better items to travel with than a tablet computer. A tablet can be your map, your guidebook and your reading library, your entertainment system, your photo storage and editing device and your means of communicating with friends back home—all in one highly portable package.

The qualities that make for a tablet good for travel are generally the same as those that make a tablet good for other purposes too. When you are on the road, though, weight and build-quality become especially important. Travelers tend to use their tablet for longer between charges and so there’s a premium on battery life. Camera quality is important, partly for taking photos mostly for making Skype video calls. Other qualities to consider in your tablet travel companion include the availability of expansion ports, the quality of the screen (especially for use in direct sunlight), the selection of travel apps and, of course, the price.

With that, here’s Spot Cool Stuff’s take on the best tablet computer to take traveling. Read on, your click on the category that most interests you:

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12 Divine Chocolate Shops
 

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Is chocolate good for you? Researchers, conducting highly scientific studies, have found chocolate beneficial in preventing a plethora of ailments including cancer, stroke and heart disease. But Spot Cool Stuff has a more simple theory:

If it makes you smile, it’s health food.

In honor of National Smile Month—and to the dismay of dentists everywhere—here’s our look at 12 wonderful chocolate shops. We hesitate calling them the “best” chocolate shops given how there are easily 60 or more stores that we could have included on this list. All the shops we did include are superlative in some one.

Note that this overview is a companion piece to our equally dentist-horrifying review of the world’s best candy shops.

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12 Cool LEGO-Themed Products

With sufficient LEGO pieces and a healthy imagination you can build pretend versions of anything. The popular line of plastic building blocks have also inspired the design of many real products. Here’s a look at 12 of them:

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Concept Design for an Apple iCar

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If there’s one product outside of the computer and portable electronics markets we wish Apple would design, it’s a car.

Spot Cool Stuff is a big fan of nearly everything Apple. Yes, their products aren’t inexpensive. But they are almost universally well designed, well built and user friendly—not to mention cool-looking. If Apple were to bring their prowess an automobile design . . . well, we can only imagine.

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7 Cool, Creative Playgrounds

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Kids crawl into the enormous play net—and parents wonder whether they'll ever see them again

Spot Cool Stuff’s inner child is still very active. Readers have probably noticed that from all our reviews of cool toys and family travel destinations that may appeal equally to adults and kids. So no wonder that we are also fans of playgrounds.

The world is, thankfully, full of creative, well-conceived plays for kids to safely play. Here’s a look at seven of our favorites:

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