The Numark NV II For Serato DJ: Upgraded For 2016

The original NUMARK DJ CONTROLLER was the first DJ controller (besides CDJs in HID mode) to come out with integrated screens that showed a wealth of information from Serato DJ. Now, Numark has done an incremental upgrade to improve the controller based on feedback from their users and the DJ community at large. Keep reading for the details on the Numark NV II.


Numark NV II

Better Browsing + Sorting

There are some basic improvements to the experience of browsing and playing tracks on the Numark NV II, including:
The NV II adds gridlines to the waveform display “so DJs can visualize the beat of their tracks more accurately.”
Improved new navigation control with push-to-load tracks via the selection knob, sorting by metadata in browse mode (album, artist, title, key, BPM), and build in controls for beat jump and quantize on/off

However, we’re wondering why all Numark NV users can’t get these two improvements – surely a firmware update is warranted?
Touch-Capacitive Jog Wheels


In addition to improving the on-screen experience, Numark has made the jog wheels on the unit touch-capacitive. Numark has been adding touch-sensitive controls on their DJ controllers for a while now – but mainly focusing on knobs for touch-to-activate filters, FX, etc.

It seems like these jogwheels are touch-sensitive in order to improve the experience of the user. Numark’s press release notes that the jog wheels have an “adaptive learning platter technology” that adjusts based on their use – similar to how some cars adjust their acceleration styles to the driver:

“Touch- capacitive means that the platters actually sense the DJ’s ‘style’ of use and they adapt themselves to that individual user. They “remember” how fast or slow, subtle or hard the DJ uses the platters and they provide the exact amount of adjustment based on past usage.”

So far we have limited details on how the jogs’ touch technology is actually used on the unit – will it be something that users can adjust, or is it completely under-the-hood? We’re interested to find out more soon once we get our hands on a unit.

There’s not too much different on this controller versus the original Numark NV – perhaps Numark has put all of their powers of innovation into the standalone MCX8000 setup. That being said, the controller looks a bit nicer than the original with the new darker jogwheels – so if you’ve been considering an NV, the NV II seems like the way to go.

Nomad PowerPack Review: A High-Quality Battery Pack With Tile Location Tracking

Nomad has been a well-known third-party Apple accessory manufacturer for a few years, creating leather cases for iPhones and iPads, Apple Watch bands, and battery packs that integrate directly into charging cables. The company's newest product is the GOAL ZERO SHERPA 50 POWER PACK, a 9,000 mAh mobile battery that is built with Nomad's usual "ultra-rugged construction," with an added bonus of Tile integration so users don't have to worry about misplacing the PowerPack. 

Design

The PowerPack is created out of a durable, polycarbonate frame that Nomad says is inspired by the manufacturing processes found in industry-leading, drop-resistant iPhone cases. Living up to the company's adventure-focused mission statement, the PowerPack has an added layer of thermoplastic polyurethane, which gives the PowerPack its ultra-rugged, grippy feel. 

The quality of Nomad's PowerPack is the accessory's first noticeable advantage: the raised texture that houses most of the pack is satisfying to grip, and the smooth section in the center -- with the Nomad logo -- provides a natural groove to place a thumb when handling the PowerPack. The downside of the texture is that it is definitely a dust and debris magnet, as can be seen in the pictures I took for the review, which represent the cleanest state I could get it in. 

For ports, the device comes with two fast-charging 3.0A USB-C ports (one to charge the PowerPack, one to charge a separate device), and one 2.4A USB-A port that supports all of the standard-issue USB charge cables that come with most smartphones and tablets. In the box, customers will get a USB-C to USB-A cable to recharge the PowerPack, but they will have to provide their own smartphone charging cables. 

In between the three ports is an LED indicator that uses three dots to display battery levels of the PowerPack's 9,000 mAh battery, with a button underneath to bring the LEDs to life, and on the very right of the pack's front is a button to sync with the Tile app. The opposite side of the PowerPack is coated with a glossy black surface, and its underside has the usual model number readouts and device information. 

Performance

The battery performance of Nomad's PowerPack proved to be reliable over the weekend as I tested it out. Starting at around an average of 21 percent battery life on my iPhone 6s Plus, the PowerPack topped off the iPhone to the mid-90 percent range three full times. The PowerPack finally died mid-way through the fourth charge (my iPhone climbing from 20 percent to 45 percent), meaning that Nomad's promise of 3.5 charges is pretty much exact. 

The 2.4 amps of the USB-A port means that the iPhone also charges a bit faster than Apple's current 1A iPhone charger. It's more along the lines of charging an iPhone with an iPad's wall charger, which are up to 2.4A with the newest generation of Apple's tablets. 

Nomad's advertising is for the iPhone 7, but the slight difference in battery capacities should mean that the PowerPack performs comparatively for iPhone 7 owners as it did for me. For comparison's sake, the iPhone 6s Plus has a 2,750 mAh battery, while the iPhone 7 Plus has a 2,900 mAh battery. For the 4.7-inch models, the iPhone 6s has a 1,715 mAh battery and the iPhone 7 has a 1,960 mAh battery. Suffice it to say that any owners of the smaller-screen iPhones will have plenty of opportunities for recharging their devices to capacity, while iPhone 7 Plus users should eke out exactly 3 full charges from Nomad's PowerPack. 

My only real complaint with the PowerPack's design is that it's sometimes cumbersome to judge the battery level when multiple cables are sticking out of the pack. At one point I had both a USB and USB-C cable plugged into the PowerPack, and having to angle everything to tap the battery level button became quite finicky. Although the innards of the PowerPack's design most likely excuse every port and button being located on one panel, having at least the LED on the opposite side of the case would have made the PowerPack more user-friendly. 

In regards to USB-C charging, the only relevant device I own is an early-2015 MacBook, which isn't exactly in the target group of products compatible with the PowerPack's 9,000 mAh battery capacity. Nomad says that with the growing adoption of USB-C, the PowerPack will work "well into the future," but many Android smartphones out now could use the port, including Google's Pixel Phone. There's also the option of purchasing a USB-C to Lightning cable, which Apple sells, to turn the PowerPack into a dual-charging iPhone system. 

A smaller, but admittedly useful feature is called AmbientIQ and it reads the light levels of wherever the user is currently located, and adjusts the battery LEDs appropriately. This way battery life can be confirmed in bright sunlight or, to Nomad's point, remain at low levels in a dimly lit room while the PowerPack is charging at night (the LEDs remain on constantly while the pack charges, but otherwise turn on at user discretion while out and about). As someone who has come to figure out crafty ways to block out the electronic lights of everything from my router to my television's HDMI splitter, the PowerPack's included AmbientIQ solution was useful and welcome. 

Tile

For those who haven't heard of Tile, the company's line of small, Bluetooth-enabled tracking devices lets users easily find misplaced keys, backpacks, laptops, tablets, and more. Tile sells the Tile Mate as the main keychain accessory and Tile Slim for wallets and laptop cases, and now the Nomad PowerPack comes with Tile's integrated iPhone-connected tracking technology. Because of its integration into Nomad's rechargeable pack, users also won't have to worry about Tile's "reTile" program, which offers discounts on the trackers when they lose battery after about a year. 

I had never used Tile before testing the PowerPack, and I've come to enjoy the Bluetooth-tracking system, although there are some hurdles to its setup. Out of the box, the PowerPack refused to sync with the iOS Tile app, which I eventually remedied by juicing up the PowerPack from its low battery shipping state. Even with a full charge, it still took a few tries, but my iPhone eventually recognized the PowerPack and began tracking it. 

Polyurethane Coatings: The Best Floor Coating for Business

In the industrial world, there are many different uses for polymers. There are even more products all around us that use polymers you might haven’t notice. The reason for their popularity is the versatility this material provides. One common use for this type of material is for industrial flooring. Using polymers for industrial flooring provides number of benefits as can be seen below.

Rubber Substitute

Polyurethanes were first used as a substitute for rubber during World War 2, and have since become a hugely popular material to be used for floor coatings. One of the most attractive aspects of this type of floor surface is the ease of which you can apply it to your floor. Once you have finished preparing the floor surface correctly, you can spray the material onto the floor with ease, coating large areas in a short period. The material is also extremely versatile as you can use it on wood, plastic, metal, as well as concrete. The variety of different colours that you can have is also something which has led to the rise in popularity for this versatile floor coating.

Benefits of HR Software for Small Businesses

Many small business owners believe that when it comes to human resource management they do not need to pay much attention or spend money on processes and tools. After all, they have only a small team of employees to manage where everyone knows everyone else and you can take care of tasks without much burden. This could be a mistake. While it is true that small businesses do not have as much need as their larger counterparts when it comes to human resource management they can still benefit by deploying HR software. Here are number of ways in which HR software can help small business owners reduce cost, streamline process and improve the business.

Easier recruitment

For any company, regardless of its size, recruitment is a big headache. Putting together a job advert does not take long, but the rest of the process can be very time consuming.

Posting the vacancy on a range of job boards, and with local agencies is surprisingly time consuming. It can easily take you two or three hours to get the job done.

If you use a good quality HR software package, like the one produced by Cascade HR, you can post your job listing to multiple email addresses at the touch of a button. Instead of it taking you hours to post your job advert, it only takes a couple of minutes. You can also save job advert templates on the system, which will save time the next time you need to recruit for the position.

Why Small Businesses Needs to Have a Blog

Blogging in the sense of businesses today is extremely important and is fast becoming one of the most important ways for businesses to connect and keep their audiences engaged. This is obviously due to the need for people to seek information through the Internet, which has revolutionised the way in which businesses feel that they need to project and engage with customers or prospective customers. Below we talk more about some of the very important reasons that businesses should be blogging regularly.

Blogging creates authority for businesses

By blogging, you create credibility for your business and reinforce your knowledge as experts in the field that your business operates in. It really doesn’t matter what your area of expertise is, it may even be something like stationery and your business sells magazine racks. You could create interesting content that pushes people to associate with your brand. For example, a blog post like “What will stationery look like in the future”. There are so many options to consider and any business can blog to reinforce their authority on particular topics and become a known brand.