Throw Down Anytime, Anywhere

A man’s college years are crucial testing grounds for good and bad ideas. Hindsight shows downing six shots of whiskey and streaking the dean’s lawn was a bad idea. Kissing your best friend’s girl afterwards probably was too. On the other hand, filling cups with beer and tossing ping pong balls in them, now that was brilliant.

That’s why the guys over at Pong A Long created the 8 foot portable beer pong table. This 8 foot regulation sized table collapses to become a 2×2 briefcase perfect for toting to your next party or event. So you’ll never miss an opportunity to brush up on your game.

We gave ours a thorough testing at the Far Hills Downs Steeple Chase a couple of weeks back and were pleased as punch. It did reveal though that Patrick’s skills have clearly faded since his school days in the 1940’s.

Next year’s tailgating will prove if an old dog can learn new tricks. Check out a shot of our own table after the jump.

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Dessert has a New Dress Code

The next time a female house guest develops a craving for late night sweets, serve it on one of these guaranteed charmers.

Made of fine china, each plate is printed with a bow tie in various states of knot-assembly and perfectly captures the haberdashery look only Ralph Lauren could pull off. Hint: the steps for tying are the same for untying. So if your guest is a quick study, she’ll get the hint in no time. It’ll only help your case if chocolates are involved as well.

Editor’s Note: Since this is fine china, make sure you wash with care. Having them licked clean doesn’t count.

Cost: $75

Also See: Insideout Collection Liquer Glass Set by AMT | Crate & Barrel Bar Tool Set

A Man-tastic Resource for the Holidays

Have you ever wanted to be the guy who gives a kick ass toast at a holiday party? Or perhaps you no longer want to be the dude who can only be trusted to bring chips and dip. Either way, the holiday season is chock full of opportunities to either adroitly impress your peers or commit a faux-pas that will leave them gossiping (a la the Bowers reindeer sweeter scandal of ‘07). Fear not, Newcastle Brown Ale is providing a life-line dubbed The Man-ual.

Besides providing lifesaving tips for navigating the entertaining season, the Man-ual also offers delicious, easy-to-make holiday recipes courtesy of cookbook author and TV cooking personality Sam the Cooking Guy. They even come on perforated recipe cards. We particularly liked the Au Revoir Fondue made with Cabot Cheddar Cheese. The GP test kitchen is still recovering.

Go from “that guy” to “go to guy” this holiday season.

Cost: Complimentary | This November In Your Local Supermarket

Also See: Kansas City Strip Steak|Crate & Barrel Bar Tool Set

Live Green And Still Live Easy

As self a proclaimed technology addict it’s been hard justifying my desire for national sustainability considering that even while turned off my home theater has enough lights glowing to rival the Vegas strip. I jest not.

Then I stumbled across this simple yet ingenious device on Popular Mechanics. Aptly called the Conserve, consider it the lazy environmentalist’s best friend. That’s because unlike other surge protectors which require you to bend over and flip a switch to fully cut off power, this marvel does it by remote. Glorious glorious remotes. [insert mad scientist laughter] Better yet, it also features two always-on outlets which insure electronics that need constant juice like your DVR and wireless router can be powered at all times.

Don’t think that these nifty features come at the price of basic requirements. On the contrary the Conserve’s wide design ensures that even clunky power adapters can plug in without blocking adjacent outlets. Plus it’s 1000 joules and $100,000 connected equipment warranty provides peace of mind along with premium protection.

However, if doing your part for the planet isn’t reason enough to spend $50 bucks to replace your current strip, I should also mention it can save you cash and eventually pay for itself. After using the Conserve with my home theater for a month, my apartment power bill dropped by 5%. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but multiply that out for a year and that’s enough scratch to give our resident sports guru Patrick those hair extensions he’s always wanted.

Editors Note: Maximize convenience by installing the included remote wall mount next to your current light switches. That way you’ll be sure to turn off the Conserve when you hit the lights.

Cost: $49

Guaranteed Topic Of Discussion For Your Fellow Imbibers

Even though our Man Poll showed beer is your beverage of choice, perhaps you should consider taking a break from your gridiron standby.

Instead serve libations with class in these hand blown stunners. As a stylish twist on traditional drinking ware, the negative space of each glass reveals its intended purpose–especially when full. So whether it’s celebratory bubbly, demure liqueur, or the quintessential martini, picking up a set of each will guarantee you’re prepared to handle all of the serving demands of the cocktail elite. That is if you can afford to fill to them…

Cost: $48-$60 @ Charles & Marie

Wireless Speaker Solution that Finally Lives Up To Its Promise

[click to enlarge image]

One disadvantage of having a gadget and gear addiction is that eventually you find little impresses you. So it goes without saying that I had my doubts when the decision was made to test the unit during our last Gear Patrol outdoor soiree.

Lifting the speaker out of its packaging was my first hint that the Outcast was of a different vain than previous wireless speaker solutions I’d encountered. My lower back can attest.

The unit’s build is solid, sporting a downward facing 8-inch subwoofer, and 4 3-inch high/mid range omni-directional drivers; all of which served as a fine teaser for hooking up the wireless transmitter (Icast) and blasting *cough* playing some music.

Unfortunately, I never tested the Icast’s purpoted broadcast range of 350 feet as that would have put us smack in the middle of a Midtown Manhattan theater. Though at 100 feet we didn’t experience any sound quality degradation from the wireless transmission. Power wasn’t an issue either, which we learned from a not so happy neighbor in the adjacent building the following morning. Apparently the speaker produced loud and clear music for all six hours of the party. Don’t bother asking why we couldn’t remember that fact on our own.

Review continues after the jump.

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