The new school or college year is right around the corner, and that means it is time for some back to school / college shopping. What will you get this year? What will you need? Well, TechVise has prepared for you a list of must haves for going back to school & college, including this lovely playlist from TED.com to get you psyched about learning.
Devices By Your Side
Aukey
The world of education is evolving. No longer so we depend on pencils and textbooks for our learning, but rather we rely on tablets and smartphones. With so many devices to juggle and keep up with, do yourself a favor and get a multi-port charger. The Aukey is a particularly promising charger because it supports fast charging 2.4, a feature commonly seen in newer devices. Charging multiple school necessities at once? What’s not to love? It only has two ports, though, so choose your devices wisely.
Nut 2 Bluetooth Smart Chip Tracker
With all of this nifty gear you’re getting for the new school year, it makes sense to get something to help you keep track of it. Introduce the Nut 2. This inconspicuous little guy can easily snap into a bag and can be tracked via Bluetooth. It’s bright design makes it easy to spot too. Best of all, you can get it for a student friendly cost at Gearbest.
Kindle Fire HD 8
Tablets are great alternatives to laptops. You get all the browsing ability of a standard browser in an easy to carry, lightweight body. The Kindle Fire HD 8 is especially nice because it is a great textbook alternative thanks to the Kindle Store. It’s also a fourth of the price of top-tier tablets, which is a huge benefit.
Apps/Services
Khan Academy
Khan Academy is great for people looking for a little extra to boost your curriculum. Khan Academy gives you tons of exercises in a variety of subjects including math, science, history, art history and finance. If you are looking to learn something on the side or just need some extra help, Khan Academy is for you. Oh they also have a section on Test Preparation and applying to colleges. So if you’re just starting high school be sure to check out their page on making high school count.
EasyBib
Everyone is in agreement that bibliographies are the worst part of any essay assignment. A misplaced author name or period can get you a serious mark down on what is ultimately a trivial task. Luckily, EasyBib does all the bibliography work for you. Need I say more?
Grammarly
Grammarly is a fantastic app + service though it is a tad expensive. What this does is, checks for grammar, contextual spelling, punctuation, sentence structure and plagiarism while you type. There are nifty browser add-ons available for Firefox, Safari & Chrome that does the basics (150 grammar & spelling checks) very well. If you subscribe to their premium plan, it checks content against another 100 advanced grammar rules, plagiarism, vocabulary enhancement suggestions and writing styles. The premium plan includes add-ons for Office that integrates with Outlook and Microsoft Word. You can also download a standalone application for Windows and MacOsX through which you can quickly upload documents in bulk and check.
Grammarly Premium is available on a monthly, quarterly and annual subscription only.
Essential Gear
The Bag of Holding
Of course, where would any student be without a trusty bag? The bag of holding is ThinkGeek’s own creation, and it lives up to the name with loads of roomy pockets to store things. The main compartment can hold a laptop up to 17″. Plus the canvas design makes it both durable and fashionable.
Smartphone Kit of Perpetual Cleaning
You’ll be doing a lot on your smartphone when you take it back to school, so that’s all the more reason to keep it clean. After all, if dust gets into any of your ports, it can seriously damage the device. Luckily this cleaning kit covers pretty much all the bases in cellphone maintenance. To keep your smartphone running longer, this is a must.
LiveScribe 3
The ultimate note-taking tool, the LiveScribe 3 is a must have for back to school items. The LiveScribe 3 comes with a moleskin journal that automatically digitized your notes and saves it on the LiveScribe+ app. For those who want old school note taking with modern convenience, it doesn’t get better than this. Read our full review of LiveScribe 3.
Last but not the least, be sure to check out Amazon’s very interesting and drool worthy page on Back to College Essentials. You will find everything from dorm (household) items to books, storage, furnishing and personal care. They also have a lot of promotions running on that page.
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