- So, today, I'm taking a look at
some of the best tech under $500 bucks.
That includes this beautiful monitor behind me
and even a look into the world of music tech.
Now, huge shout out to today's sponsor, Beautyrest,
who asked me to showcase their sleep tracker monitor.
And like I talked about in my 4k setup video,
I want to shake things up when it comes to sponsored videos.
So, anytime a brand wants to sponsor video
and ask me to showcase their product,
I want to use that as a chance to give back to you guys
and make sure that you have a chance to win that product.
So if you want a chance to win a Beautyrest sleep tracker,
or an amazon equivalent gift card,
details are down below.
So this is the Beautyrest sleep tracker,
which is Alexa-enabled,
and allows you to turn any bed into a smart bed.
How it works is out of the box you get two sensors.
So in this case, I have it set up to track two people.
But if you're riding solo,
you'd simply place one in the middle.
From there, then feed information into the brain,
which is located underneath your bed.
This does the tracking, the processing,
and ultimately allows you not to
have to wear a tracker to bed.
This works hand-in-hand with the sleep tracker app,
which allows you to set bedtime goals when you wanna wake.
And what's awesome is,
because the sensor are integrated into the bed,
it can track your heart rate, your body movement,
and ultimately give you
the most accurate information possible.
Beyond that, because there is a dedicated processor,
it is constantly adapting and getting smarter over time.
In my case, if I can get six to six and a half hours
of sleep every night, that would be ideal.
If you need less or you need more,
let me know with a comment down below.
But if you've been looking for a sleep tracker
whether it's an upgrade from an app
or you just hate wearing things to bed,
this is a super cool piece of tech.
From there, we are jumping straight into that monitor.
This is the ASUS MX299Q and if you've been looking
for an ultra wide monitor but don't want to drop
a ton of cash, this guy is hair over $350 bucks.
Right off the bat what I love
about this monitor is how it looks.
And in this case, I think the contrast
of the silver and white looks amazing
but ultimately I think it would awesome on any desk.
I think the circular base gives off
this really cool futuristic look.
You have a ton of inputs: display port, HDMI,
sadly no USBC but for the price, I can live with that.
This is 21x9 aspect ratio which gives you
a resolution of 2560x1080p.
No 1440p but ultimately that is what allows
it to sit under $400 price point.
And if you don't need those many pixels,
that's gonna put some cash back into your pocket.
Quality wise, this monitor looks awesome, and personally,
I am a single non ultra wide monitor kind of guy
but I can totally see the appeal.
One, it looks awesome and two,
if you need that extra screen real estate,
it almost mimics a dual monitor setup
but while keeping things nice and tidy.
Beyond that there is a pretty nice
set of speakers built into this monitor.
They're not gonna blow your mind
but if you don't need anything loud
or you're looking to upgrade your speakers later,
they will definitely do the job.
In this case, I have it hooked up to a MacBook Pro
but I think it has me inspired for a Windows based setup.
I have a challenge to get everything
including the monitor, the computer,
the desk for under $1,000 bucks.
If that's something you want to see,
let me know by dropping a like down below.
Overall, this is a really good looking monitor
both on the video quality spectrum and the aesthetic.
And if you've been looking for an ultra wide 21x9 monitor
but didn't want to spend over $500 bucks,
this might be your go to option.
Next, we're taking a look at a backpack
and I've looked at backpacks ranging
from $35 bucks all the way up to $1,300.
This is no where the cheapest nor the most expensive,
but it is for sure unique.
This is the S series travel camera backpack from Vinta.
And I think when most people see the price at $240 bucks,
they might react and say, "Holy crap,
"that is kind of expensive," but when you sit back
and break down the purpose of this backpack,
it's not that crazy.
For starters, this is a camera backpack.
So, it's purpose is to potentially carry
thousands upon thousands of dollars of gear.
And I think what I like most about this backpack,
is that it doesn't look like a camera backpack.
So, no ones going to know that
you have tons of gear inside.
It is surprisingly compact which is awesome for traveling.
Because if you can minimize a big,
bulky backpack on your back, that is awesome.
From there it's the small things
like having magnetic straps that really
make the backpack an enjoyable experience.
And I know, that might kind of sound silly
but it's the attention to detail
that really takes things over the top.
And even though this is a relatively compact backpack,
there is a ton of room inside.
So, on top of all your camera gear,
there's also room for a laptop.
So, in this case I have A6500 and some lenses,
a 15 inch MacBook Pro, and there is still room
for the charger, hard drives, headphones,
and overall this is a really well though out
and well executed camera backpack
that doesn't actually look like a camera backpack
that still looks really good.
Next from there, this is the One from Apogee
which is a beautiful interface
that allows you to either record an instrument
like guitar or bass or a microphone into your Mac.
So, this connects via USB to your Mac
and on top of being a fantastic interface it also doubles
as a really high quality dac and headphone amp.
One thing that drives me crazy with audio interfaces,
in particular, is when they don't talk to your computer
and don't allow you to control
your system's volume through the hardware.
In this case, the Apogee One works perfectly.
So, how it works is when you want to
plug in an instrument or plug in a microphone,
there's a break out cable which connects to the Apogee.
This is cool because when you're not using it,
you can keep it tucked away which keeps things clean.
And then next from here, we're gonna go ahead
and plug in a microphone.
Now, this microphone is actually the final piece of tech
of the best tech under $500 bucks.
I'm just gonna use it hand in hand with the Apogee One.
This is the Spirit from Aston microphones
which looks great but sounds even better.
Now rather than give you a demo
of me talking with the microphone,
I thought it'd be cool let you hear
how it sounds with different voices.
So, this is the Spirit microphone,
going into the Apogee One, into a MacBook Pro..
- Man, sometimes the attention from fame is so annoying.
- Then why is your shirt off?
- Austin Evans, oh my God, my favorite YouTuber.
- You're so much more ripped in person.
Wow Evans, we love you.
Selfie.
- Oh my God, that was so beautiful, you have fans.
- Yeah, if I were you, I'd be flattered.
- Ehhh.
- You wanna stop right there for a few seconds?
- Sure.
(slap)
- You're a goddamn internet celebrity, Evans.
I know you track Social Blade everyday.
Reap the benefits, Evans, reap the benefits.
- You know, 2 million subscribers isn't that bad, Evans.
- All they want are PC builds.
I'm tired of the attention.
- Maybe you should do the PC builds shirtless
with your big, meaty claws.
- Yeah, Evans, use them big, meaty claws.
- I can't do it anymore,
(gun shots) just get out of here.
- Alright, we acted like fans, pay up.
- Alright, fine, thanks for the attention.
- This is $100, you said $200 bucks.
- Yeah, being your fans ain't cheap.
- Two words, ad pocalypse (guns shots).
- So, you can see this microphone does an amazing job
on voiceover but if you're a musician,
here's how it sounds on acoustic guitar and vocals.
♫ And it keeps cursing my name
♫ No matter what I do
♫ I'm no good without you
♫ And I can't get enough
♫ Must be love on the brain
♫ Then you keep ♫
So, all in all, a really impressive microphone
and honestly I think it can compete
with microphones twice its price.
Whether it's a voiceover, an instrument, or vocals
it all handles it really well.
And in this case I think the Spirit microphone plus the
Apogee One is a killer audio combo under $1,000 bucks.
Aside from that, thank you guys very much for watching.
If you want to check out that full cover
using that microphone, check out the video here.
Or if you want to check out some more Lego stop
motion awesomeness you can check out Bill, Play, Repeat.
This is Jonathan and I will catch you guys later.
♫ And you got me ♫