Thanks to Best Buy for sponsoring this review.

It’s well established that I love gadgets. And gadgets that help me improve my health? Why, of course I’m interested.

I’ve already reviewed two activity trackers, both of which have their advantages and disadvantages. I like both of them, but they each have things I don’t like about them. One is bulky and has to be clipped somewhere. The other is a chunky bracelet that doesn’t have the ability to wirelessly transmit data.

So when I heard about the Misfit Shine, I knew I wanted to try it out. The Shine is described as a more elegant activity tracker, designed to be worn via different accessories to fit any occasion. It is much slimmer than any other tracker, and weighs very little.

Features

Some of the features of the Shine include:

• Activity Tracking, including: Steps, Swimming, Biking, Tennis, etc.,
• Sleep
• Calories
• Clock
• Waterproof
• Extra Accessories (includes Magnet clip): Leather Bands, Sport band, Necklace

How it works

The Misfit Shine is easy to set up. The Shine is powered by a coin cell battery which lasts about four months. (You can purchase additional batteries at many stores.) After inserting the battery, just download the Misfit Shine app for your smartphone or tablet, create an account and set your goals, sync for the first time, and you’re ready to go!

The Shine comes with two accessory pieces for two options to wear it. One is a magnetic clip to let you clip it to your shirt, your pocket, your shoe – anywhere that works best for you. The clip is a strong magnet, so there’s no worry about it falling off, but also don’t let it get too close to anything that could be erased by a magnet. The second accessory is a rubber bracelet to let you wear the Shine watch-style.

This device isn’t just a step counter, it can also track other activities you participate in as well. It’s water resistant, so you can even wear it while swimming. (I haven’t tried that out yet.) There’s also a built-in sleep tracker, so you can see just how well you’re sleeping at night.

App functionality is fairly straight-forward. The Shine syncs by being in close proximity to your mobile device. From the app, you can also see steps taken, calories burned, your sleep data, and set daily goals for yourself.

The Shine itself looks very unassuming. There’s no LED screen or plug-in port to give away that it’s an activity tracker. But if you double-tap the device, tiny white lights appear, letting you know how close you are to completing your daily goal. If you get the full circle of lights, you’ve met your daily goal.

Performance

I tried wearing the Misfit Shine both as a clip-on and bracelet style. Wearing it as a bracelet is easier to do when wearing it 24 hours a day, since I don’t have to remember to un-clip it and re-clip it to clothing.

Checking in during the day to see how many lights were lit up on the device is motivating. Somehow, I like seeing those little bright lights cheering me on more than any other device’s way to update me on my goal status.

I do think the Shine does better when clipped to the body than when worn on the wrist. The extra movement of limbs sometimes registers as extra steps. For example, these two snapshots of the device show an increase in the number of steps over about an hour and a half. Only problem? I was sitting on the couch the entire time.

I tried the same thing with having the Shine clipped to a front pocket of my jeans, and it didn’t have the same issue. So, for now I’d recommend that it needs to stay close to the body center for the best accuracy.

Final thoughts

The Misfit Shine is a gorgeous activity monitor, and those who want to be more proactive about their health but don’t want to wear an obvious device will find this to be the perfect fit. The thin round disc is very elegant, and the accessories really make it versatile. I didn’t have the necklace accessory, but I’m considering getting it.

The app to go with the Shine is simple, effective, and easy to use. The ability to track activities other than running/walking is useful, and the sleep tracker can tell you how much deep sleep you’re getting each night. I also like that the battery has a four month life instead of requiring frequent recharging.

If you want an easy way to monitor your activity and empower yourself to set goals to improve your health, take a peek at the Misfit Shine.

Shine is exclusively available in additional colors at Best Buy including Silver, Black, Champagne and Topaz. It’s retail price is $99.99.

Disclosure: The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.

I love getting the chance to go out to the movies with Aaron. But going to see a geeky comic movie? Before it comes out? And for free? We’ll go through our entire contact list to find a babysitter to make sure we don’t miss that.

Last week we got to see the second Thor movie. We enjoyed it, and spent the next hour after the movie discussing its strengths and weaknesses in detail. I wanted to write a review beyond commenting on how good Chris Hemsworth looks as a Norse god, but then I read Aaron’s review and realized I agreed with most everything he said, so I asked if I could re-post it as a guest post here.

Please enjoy Aaron’s very thorough review of Thor: The Dark World, and my far less thorough commentary throughout in red.

—–

Marvel is now two films into “Phase Two” of their cinematic universe. “Phase One” was unquestionably strong, with good box office takes and even better critical reviews of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and decent results from The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2.

And, of course, The Avengers.

The first film in Phase Two, Iron Man 3 was met with mixed reactions. I liked it more than many, but while the film was almost certainly a success, it wasn’t the same kind of instant sensation that the original Iron Man was. Marvel was therefore banking quite a lot behind Thor: The Dark World, and especially in the charisma and good looks of its stars, Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Tom Hiddleston (Loki).

I was lucky enough to catch a preview screening of the film last Monday. So, how was it?

Synopsis

Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World continues the big-screen adventures of Thor, the Mighty Avenger, as he battles to save Earth and all the Nine Realms from a shadowy enemy that predates the universe itself. In the aftermath of Marvel’s Thor and Marvel’s The Avengers, Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos… but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. To defeat an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor sets upon his most dangerous and personal journey yet, forced into an alliance with the treacherous Loki to save not only his people and those he loves… but our universe itself.

The Film

There are some truly wonderful things that are done in Thor: The Dark World. Chris Hemsworth has transformed from the petulant godling we saw at the beginning of Thor into a true hero. He’s self-assured, but not cocky; patient with those around him; and a devoted son and brother. This version of Thor will be familiar to readers of the comic. The other members of the cast are equally skilled, although some characters get more screen time than they deserve, while others are painfully ignored when they shouldn’t be.

A notable performance is, of course, Tom Hiddleston as the Trickster god, Loki. Hiddleston has stolen the screen in every scene he has played as this character for two films now, and that continues in Thor: The Dark World. Loki is magnetic and captivating, whether he is trading barbs with Thor’s companions, acting indifferent while imprisoned in a cell, or truly caught in the grip of emotion. The fortunate news is that we are very unlikely to be finished with seeing Loki after this movie. [Christina’s note: Loki did steal the show. This film should have been named Loki: The Dark World.]

The action moves effortlessly between the otherworldly realms of Asgard and Svartalfheim to our own Midgard (also known as Earth), and Director Alan Taylor’s knowledge of how to film fantasy from Game of Thrones is on fine display here. Action is mixed well with drama, and most of the humor works.

It is also nice that Jane gets more to do this time around, and her scientific knowledge helps tip the scale of the battle at the film’s end. This almost makes up for the fact that Jane spends nearly the entire second act of the film as the McGuffin – the thing that everyone wants – and not really a character. [Christina’s note: That was the primary thing I didn’t like about the movie.]

The Good

With only a few exceptions, the cast absolutely makes this film. I’ve already praised Hemsworth and Hiddleston, and it should go without saying that Sir Anthony Hopkins is wonderful. Idris Elba gets to flex his muscles a bit more this time around as Heimdall, and although their scenes are all too brief, the Warriors Three and Sif each have several nice character moments where they get to shine.

Portman’s Jane Foster also has some excellent moments, while Stellan Skarsgard gets to show us a brilliant man who has been destroyed mentally by his past encounters with the gods. [Christina’s note: Aaron is perhaps not emphasizing just how mentally destroyed the character is portrayed, to the point that he’s a comedy bit thru the film.] Although painfully underutilized, Christopher Eccleston manages to give us a nice portrayal of Malekith, leader of the Dark Elves, as does Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Algrim/Kurse.

What was an amazingly refreshing stroke in the characterization column was Renee Russo as Frigga, queen of the gods and mother to both Thor and Loki. In her we can see why Loki may reject Odin as a father, but never rejects that she is his mother, and she has a truly inspiring scene reminding us of just why Odin picked her to be his bride. Some of the most effective dramatic moments of the movie involve her. [Christina’s note: She really is impressive in this film. And she gets to kick ass at one point, too.]

It’s also worth noting that there are many moments involving Loki that are hilarious. As in, laugh-out-loud funny. Expect to see lots of Loki quotes coming out of this film as memes on Facebook. And the cameos are superb. Stan Lee once again gets to appear, and there is a member of the Avengers crew that gets some additional time to shine – acting very out of character, but in an entirely appropriate way.

The Bad

Underutilization. There is no other way to say it. Thor: The Dark World has enough different plot elements that it means that some of them simply do not get explored. Why do the Dark Elves wish to destroy everything and return to Darkness? Well, because they’re Dark Elves. No other explanation is given. Eccleston is amazing, but he gets so little time to actually show us who Malekith is, and never gets to deliver dialogue in English. [Christina’s note: Well…he gets a few lines in English. But sadly it’s mostly him speaking in what sounds like recorded Russian played backwards.]

Similarly, there is an interesting side-romance to be developed involving Sif, which is given lip-service, but then is dropped almost entirely. There are many moments involving Jane Foster and Sif that could have been explored using this theme, but they’re not there. Maybe they were filmed and left on the cutting-room floor, but it left me wishing that they had simply never even brought up the idea that Thor should be with Sif.

As I mentioned above, The Warriors Three are each played well, and it’s nice to see Zachary Levi as Fandral, but they could almost have been cut from the film for as much as they have to do – and in fact, Hogun departs their company in his first scene.

The pacing of the second act is also really off. The film starts strong, but by the time Loki, Thor and Jane leave Asgard, I found myself severely losing interest, even almost nodding off in the theater. It picked up again at the film’s climax, but it was still a tough half-hour or so to get through. [Christina’s note: to be fair, Aaron falls asleep every night around 9pm, so he was only slightly ahead of schedule on that. But I’ll agree it was slow in the middle. And far too predictable in some areas.]

The Ugly

Darcy. Oh… Darcy. I’ve been a fan of Kat Dennings in the past, and quite enjoyed her in the first Thor. But this time around, I found myself frequently wishing she would just shut up and go away. There was literally nothing she did that couldn’t have been accomplished by Jane alone, and the inclusion of Darcy’s intern was both uninteresting and took time away from the story elements that should have been expanded on. [Christina’s note: no disagreement here. She was annoying.]

Final Thoughts

My main thoughts about Thor: The Dark World are that the film is in the realm of “If this had come out in the 90s or early 2000s when we had so many terrible superhero films in a row, this would have been hailed as the Second Coming.” But now that we’ve had some legitimately amazing films? This one was just okay.

It’s not awful by any means. The plot is serviceable, the action is decent, and it’s filmed well. There are some legitimately touching scenes, and most of the humor was fun. [Christina’s note: I’d argue that if you removed Darcy a la Jar-Jar Binks and renamed the film for Loki, you might see serious praise for the film.]

But the pacing is off. The film lacks urgency. The Dark Elves never have any motivating factor other than “They’re dark. They like darkness.” They have a little bit of a revenge plot motivation, but that’s just because the first time they wanted to destroy everything and create darkness, the Asgardians stopped them. [Christina’s note: Totally agree. They have even less motivation than the generic aliens in The Avengers. The only difference is we like Chris Eccleston and wish we had more character development from him.]

Did I regret watching it? Not at all. And I’ll see it again and purchase it on Blu-Ray. [Christina’s note: let’s be honest – even if we hated it, the movie would likely be joining the collection, just for completion’s sake.] But in my opinion, this may be the weakest of the seven films Marvel has put out. [Christina’s note: I disagree on this point. Hulk.] I still enjoyed it more than I have any of DC’s offerings since Watchmen and The Dark Knight, but I’d rather watch the original Thor, Iron Man or Captain America: The First Avenger over this one.

This may spell a sign of trouble for Marvel. Have they lost their mojo entirely, and could the great experiment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe be headed for collapse? It’s probably too soon to tell, although critical response to Iron Man 3 and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (which I am enjoying) may lead you to think so. [Christina’s note: maybe this movie just needed Coulson?] We’ll have a better idea after this Spring rolls around, with Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy to look forward to.

Evenings around our house are often a battle of noise. One person wants to watch TV. Another wants to play on the Nintendo DS. Another is practicing her spelling on the iPad. And then there’s always Aaron or I on our computers or iPhones, occasionally clicking through to hear a quick video or song. With that many devices, it would be a cacophony of sounds, but most evenings (or car rides) it’s fairly quiet because at least the kids will be wearing their headphones to go with their devices.

Cordy’s sensory issues caused us to quickly become a family dependent on headphones when we’re spending time in independent electronic pursuits. We got Cordy her first pair of headphones at five years old, and then bought new headphones for both kids two years ago. Headphones keep the peace in the car, and there have been a few times when an overstimulated Cordy was soothed by restricting the noise around her with a set of headphones.

I love listening to music. When the volume is just right, I can lose myself and forget about all of the stress in my life for the length of a good song. Flying to and from Atlanta last month, I popped my headphones on at ten thousand feet and listened to music for most of the flights. And while a lot of people advise against running with music for 5K events, I can’t do it without my running soundtrack urging me on.

I recently had the chance to try out the new N-Tune headphones by Monster. I like that these are over-ear headphones instead of ear buds – nothing against ear buds, but the 80’s girl in me appreciates the old-school headphones with a sleek, modern redesign. Earbuds never seem to get the depth of music that you can get with over-ear headphones.

I have a small set of ear buds, but they’re the ones that came with my iPhone and while they’re good for basic sound, they aren’t that great for music. And I don’t really like earbuds – no matter how well I try to fit them to my ears, they always make my ears hurt after a bit. Not to mention that people still feel the need to talk to you when you have earbuds in. Large, over-ear headphones project that “I can’t – and don’t – want to hear you” vibe that is sometimes needed.

The Monster N-Tune headphones are designed to provide the perfect balance for modern music, emphasizing beats and bass. Unlike the headphones of the previous generation, these also have a built-in ControlTalk remote, meaning that when they’re plugged into your smartphone, you can not only adjust volume from the remote but also automatically pause your music and answer calls.

The Monster headphones have a tangle-free cord as well, are lightweight and come in a variety of sweet candy colors. Mine? Orange, just in time for Halloween.

So how did they work for us? I was surprised by the comfort and cushion of the ear pieces. They looked too small for my ears, yet fit comfortably over them. The cord really is tangle-free, too, avoiding any knots even when I stuff it in the included carrying bag without folding up the cord first. Just take it out, give it a little shake, and the cord goes from a bunched up mess to a long, smooth cord.

I did find that connecting the cord to the headphones required pushing the connector in harder than I expected. I connected the cord and felt a click, so I thought it was in, but the music sounded tinny at first. I unplugged it and plugged the cord into the headphones again, putting a little more force into it this time, and that time I was certain it was properly connected. The music confirmed it.

The sound coming from these headphones is impressive. The bass comes out loud and clear, not overpowering other layers of the music but instead serving as the musical punctuation it’s designed to be. Voices are clear and crisp, and the most subtle song intricacies aren’t missed. The headphones also are fantastic at reducing outside noise so you don’t need to turn the volume up as loud to block the outside world.

The N-Tune headphones by Monster are adjustable and fit well for both of my kids, too. Plus, these headphones are flexible and can withstand a lot of abuse – always a bonus when using them with kids.

Giveaway!

Want to win a pair of Monster N-Tune headphones for yourself? Monster and BlogHer are giving away 25 pairs of these headphones (valued at $150!), and you can enter for a chance to win one right here!

To enter, take a peek at all of the features on the Monster N-Tune headphones product page, then come back here and leave me a comment letting me know which color is your favorite!

Sweepstakes Rules:

No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

• Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
• Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
• Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post.
• For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winner will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

BlogHer will pool entries from participating blogs and select a sweepstakes winner at random and will contact the winner with details about fulfilling the prize.

The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 10/2/13 – 11/1/13.

Good luck!