Monthly Archives: June 2018

Technology

Gogogate 2 – Turn Your Existing Garage Into a Smart One

Posted on by ryuker
28
Jun

Back in 2015, I was searching for products to turn my home into a smart one. It was really easy finding a smart thermostat and smart door locks, but when it came to smart garages it was really difficult. I spent few days searching the internet of how to turn your garage into a smart one, and I came across Gogogate 2. The price was $134 including the wireless sensor, so I had my doubt about the product. I didn’t find many articles talking about the product, so I decided to take the risk and try it out. Installation was very simple that I did everything by myself. The product changed my life, and it is one of the products that i highly recommend to anyone. Even my friends in San Diego were wondering how did I turn my garage into a smart one with such a small device. Days later, I bought Gogogate 2 for all my Airbnb homes, so I no longer wait for the guests to arrive. All of my guests loved it, and they started to buy Gogogate 2 for their garages. I just wish that there is automatic integration with Airbnb where whenever someone book, automatically they get the user name and password instead of me creating users for each guest and then delete it once the guest check out. The only time I faced a challenge is when I bought Gogogate 2 for one of my homes and it had a different type of garage button. When I clicked the button, it turns on then automatically disconnect. I contacted Gogogate support and they replied with a solution immediately, and their solution required soldering. They attached a sketch of the points I should solder, and it was really easy to understand even for non engineers. I opened the garage door button and soldered the points, and it started working. The beauty about Gogogate 2 is that it is a very easy to use and the applications on both iOS and Android are very user-friendly. Now whenever someone arrives at my home before I do, I just give them access and they get in. My life is so much easier with Gogogate 2. Now I am waiting for the next release if there is one to upgrade all my homes to Gogogate 3.

 

 

 

 

Services

Project Fi – A Service That Changed My Life

Posted on by ryuker
27
Jun

Project Fi is one of the services that completely changed my life. I was invited to Project Fi back in August 2015, and back then I was using At&t. I decided to give it a shot and try Google’s latest service. The service was great, but it had some limitations. The main limitation I faced was not being able to have my Whatsapp calls while driving on the 5 or 405 freeways. The connection used to disconnect every 30 seconds and then reconnect again. I ended up going back to At&t for a while, and 6 months later when my schedule was packed with trips outside the US. I joined Project Fi one more time and it completely changed my life. It is such a convenience when I land in each country and turn on my phone while I am on the plane and get internet connection instantly. The only country I didn’t get internet connection was Lebanon, so I had to buy a sim card from one of the local telecom companies. Last time I used Whatsapp calls on the 5 and 405 freeways in Socal, I saw major improvement. The call disconnect every now and then, but I can live with that. Whatsapp calls on Project Fi is’t as reliable as At&t or Verizon, but I believe Google will eventually get there. The beauty about Google is that they always push to improve their services, and they always keep everything very simple. Now most of my family switched to Project Fi, and all of us are really happy with the service. Can’t wait to see Project Fi having internet connection in every single country around the world.

Food

Rock House Sliders Opened in Los Angeles

Posted on by ryuker
26
Jun

I just got fresh news about Rock House Sliders “RHS” in Los Angeles from my friends in Kuwait. They said they are open now for business and they are doing pretty well. I heard about the opening back in October when LA Eater posted an article about a Kuwait based company wanting to teach LA how to do sliders. Honestly I thought that was a very bold statement considering the US make the best burgers in the world, but I really wish RHS the best of luck. The owners are really ambitious and we always support Kuwaiti concepts in and outside of Kuwait.

This is a picture back in January 2018 when the site was under construction. Sadly I was in the US, but I didn’t pass by RHS. I am going again this summer and I really can’t wait to go and try it out. I am really happy to see Kuwaitis expanding overseas and try to create global chains. Kuwaitis are really talented and now they are making a difference more than ever.

Good luck to the owners of Rock House Sliders, and the Ryukers team wish you the best of luck. We want you guys to succeed in California.

Rock House Sliders Address:

7950 W Sunset Blvd Ste 103, Los Angeles, CA 90046.

Phone: 323-952-6016

Website: https://www.rockhousesliders.com/

Merchandise

Funko Pop | Suddenly Available All Over Kuwait

Posted on by ryuker
23
Jun

I started to see Funko Pops around 2 years ago, but it wasn’t really available much. I remember I used to go to video game exhibitions such as Knot, Comic Con, and IGN. The store that sold them was Pro Gaming, and I remember most people were buying from them. Sharingan is another store, but they didn’t focus as much on Funko Pops. Now the availability of Funko Pops has changed so much where it is literally available everywhere. The first place I saw them, and the display was really nice, it was at Fantasy World at the Avenues. When I saw the display, I was really impressed, because it was the coolest part of the entire store.

Fantasy World at The Avenues

I saw the products at Xcite and Xcite.com, but I wasn’t really surprised because Xcite get all types of products. It was still nice to have them on both the store and website. The only thing I didn’t understand is the way Xcite protects the product. Usually they use the RFID tags for expensive products, but it shouldn’t be the case for Funko Pop.

At Xcite Store in The Avenues

At Xcite.com

The product has always been available at Ufff and you can still buy them from Ufff.com or from their instagram page Ufff. Ufff.com is one of the best websites in Kuwait. They sell lots of Funko products and other toys and collectables. I like their website design a lot and their branding is really impressive

At Ufff Website Ufff.com

The place that I really didn’t expect to find Funko Pops at is Trolley, but it was a genius idea, because I saw the kids asking for them even though they were going to buy candy and chocolate.

At Trolley in Qurtuba

It is really nice to find Funko Pops all over Kuwait, and I am happy to see such a great product being available even at convenience stores. When you think of buying a gift for anyone whether it is a kid, teenager, or an adult. They love getting Funko, and this is what I have been getting these days, whenever I need to buy a gift. I buy Funko Pop, and the most recent one I bought was Crash Bandicoot Funko Pop from Xcite at The Avenues.

Check out Ryukers lists for all E Commerce Websites & Apps in Kuwait / E Services Websites & Apps in Kuwait

E Commerce

Why Best Buy & Walmart Will Never Catch Up With Amazon

Posted on by ryuker
14
Jun

Best Buy and Walmart have been trying to catch up with Amazon for a very long time. They tried doing price match, pick up in store, and lowering the minimum ticket price for free shipping. The main problem with both Best Buy and Walmart is that they are not flexible with international shipments. With Amazon they offer international shipping to most countries, and it is extremely fast. Once I wanted to buy a tablet for my mother, but I wasn’t interested in the options and prices we have in Kuwait, so I ended up buying it from Amazon directly to Kuwait. It took 3-4 days to arrive and I saved a total of $170. It is extremely convenient, because Amazon take care of all the custom fees and importing charges. They refund the difference 1-2 weeks after I receive the items, so it is really impressive.

Now with Walmart and Best Buy they are the worst, because not only they don’t ship outside the US, but also they cancel transaction to forwarding boxes in the US. The forwarding boxes is an address in the US where they receive the package and ship internationally to any country. I can’t believe that they cancel most orders going to Aramex, MyUS, and the rest. One time we ordered a laptop from Best Buy to a package forwarding address, but it was cancelled. We tried three different addresses, but again all of them were cancelled.

Amazon is a different game, because they never cancelled a single order to any package forwarding addresses, and they ship anywhere. I believe even if I live in a cave, or on an island by myself, Amazon will still ship the package. Best Buy have the best selection of laptops, but the problem is their cancellation for shipments to forwarding addresses.

“Amazon’s market is the entire world, where Walmart and Best Buy is the US only”

Food, Kuwait

Hectare’s | The Most Luxury Factory in Kuwait

Posted on by ryuker
13
Jun

A while ago I wrote about Hectare’s chips, which set a total new standard in the local manufacturing industry. Last year Hectare’s were selling bag of chips in 150g, then they released 40g bags. Two weeks ago, they released a pack of 6, each containing 25g. When I saw the pack of 6, I realized that Hectare’s is one of most innovative companies in Kuwait when it comes to manufacturing. Everyone who visited the factory said one thing “this factory make you feel as if you are in the US or Europe.” Check their video of manufacturing the chips and you will be proud that Hectare’s is a Kuwaiti brand.

Tour Visits

 

Check out Ryukers lists for all E Commerce Websites & Apps in Kuwait / E Services Websites & Apps in Kuwait

Technology

McDonald’s Self-Order Kiosk

Posted on by ryuker
10
Jun

McDonald’s is leading innovation with their technology and the latest thing that is spreading across McDonald’s branches is the self ordering kiosk. I saw the self ordering kiosk about 6 months ago in McDonald’s on Gulf Street. The kiosk was user-friendly, and extremely convenient. People were waiting in line, and I wanted to avoid the wait of few minutes. I went directly to the self ordering kiosk which no one was using, and I ordered from it. The experience was really amazing and efficient. This technology should be used in all restaurants around the world. I believe this technology has so much room to improve and the cycle is still at the early stages. I was surprised when I saw the self-order kiosk for the first time, because labor is cheap in Kuwait. McDonald’s has always been an exciting company when it comes to technology, and I really look forward to see what they come up with in the near future.

Technology

Plex Sync: Cast Vs Airplay

Posted on by ryuker
04
Jun

I have been an Android fan since November 2012 and since then most of my devices are Google devices. The only product I use from Apple is my Macbook Pro due to the user-friendly browsing. Today I was surprised that for the first time ever, I favor using Apple TV over Android TV. I have always been using Chromecast and Android TV, and I really love using the casting feature. Today I realized that the casting feature is really limited compared to Apple Airplay. The issue started when I was trying to watch an animation episode on Plex, but for some reason I was having issues with streaming at Full HD due to the slow internet connection. I decided to sync (download) the episode on my Android TV, or Fire TV, but it wasn’t possible. I just knew that the only sync option is with mobile and tablet devices, so I ended up syncing the episode on my Android phone. When the syncing was complete, I tried to cast it on my Android TV, but it was streaming again. It didn’t run the downloaded episode from my phone on Android TV. It was a big disappointment because I didn’t know what to do. I decided to sync the episode on my wife’s iphone, and then use Airplay. Guess what, it worked perfectly and it was running the downloaded episode from the iphone on Apple TV. We really enjoyed the episode, but again I was disappointed in the casting feature which need improvements big time.

Food, Kuwait, The Best in Kuwait

The Two Best Fried Chicken Sandwiches in Kuwait

Posted on by ryuker
03
Jun

I have always been a fan of fried chicken sandwiches, and the first one that I fell in love with and still live is KFC Zinger. Things have changed the past 5 years where we have more local premium fried chicken concepts in Kuwait that even international chains can’t compete with. My favorite restaurant is still KFC, but when I crave premium fried chicken sandwich, I have two sandwiches. The first one is Mr Bells from Ridly’s in Salhiya. This sandwich is extremely unique, because it has a piece of fried cheese. Once you bite the sandwich, you see the cheese coming out from the crispy layer. The bun of the sandwich is very soft, and the chicken is very tender. The sauce most of the time is perfect, but sometimes they miss the taste for some reason. Mr Bells taste much better once you eat it at their branch.

“I believe that Mr Bells is the best fried chicken sandwich in Kuwait.”

The first one right now Chunky from Eggcellent. Sadly this sandwich is available until 2pm, because Eggcellent is a breakfast concept. The amazing thing is that it is available all time after futoor in Ramadan. The chicken of the sandwich is very tender, and the crumbs is very crunchy. Give it a shot and let me know what you think in the comments below.

 

The second option is Beak Original. I usually order Beak from Deliveroo and the quality is really impressive. I usually hesitate to try a new restaurants, but Beak was totally worth it. Try it out and let me know what you think

Food, Kuwait, The Best in Kuwait

Numou | Best Healthy Food Subscription in Kuwait

Posted on by ryuker
01
Jun

Numou is a new company that already set a total new standard in the food subscription industry in Kuwait. The other competitors are kind of competing on the same exact segment, because their quality and pricing is almost similar. Numou is really premium and the taste is really impressive. Numou is currently available on carriage, and it is a great way to test it out. Usually healthy meals tastes terrible, but Numou tastes great for healthy food.

 

The key differentiator with Numou is that the taste and quality keeps improving with time instead of just being consistent. I realized that you could tell the quality of a concept from the first impression when you see the branding of the concept. Numou has a really nice brand, and you could tell the effort that went into it. When I checked their instagram page, I was impressed with the quality of pictures. The level of care that went into this concept is abnormal. I believe that Numou is one of the concepts in Kuwait that has the potential to expand regionally, and replicating such a concept is extremely difficult.

The interesting thing about the new local concepts in Kuwait is that they are much better than the international concepts coming to Kuwait. Kuwaitis are setting a new standard in the food industry, and the trend will eventually continue. The idea of making Kuwait to be the food hub of the world is really doable.

Numou Website: http://www.numou.life/

Numou Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/numoulife/

Check out Ryukers lists for all E Commerce Websites & Apps in Kuwait / E Services Websites & Apps in Kuwait