Archiving iSoaker.net

Alas, my initial thoughts on how iSoaker.net would be used have not come to be. As my time and interests have drifted elsewhere, I realize the best thing to do is to focus my energies on things that still inspire me and stop burning time on things that just no longer of interest. However, given the amount of content here, I do not simply wish to remove this site. As such, iSoaker.net is going into stasis mode. No new content is planned for the foreseeable future, but the existing content will remain accessible to all visitors.

As for me, I’ll be focusing my energies on iSoaker.com. Soak on!

Water Blaster Review Progress

As the fourth full week of 2016 begins, the third review on a new water blaster items is now posted on iSoaker.com. The newest reviews are:

With today’s review posting, we remain on-track for posting one new review each week, though as some of the more notable new items are reviewed, not as interesting items may end up having briefer reviews done instead.

The following are the models we plan to do full reviews on:

  • Nerf Super Soaker H2Ops Squall Surge
  • Nerf Super Soaker Tidal Torpedo Bow
  • Water Warriors Aqua Wheel
  • Water Warriors Barbarian

I am still debating about the other new items I have, but am admittedly not as interested in doing full reviews on standard-looking pump-action water blasters with the availability of more pressure-based water blasters.

In all cases, looking at the snow outside, it’ll still be a little while before I get to do any meaningful range testing on any of these blasters.

iSoaker Review Planning for 2016

Water blaster and water gun reviews remain the primary focus for iSoaker.com. However, as the quality and quantity of brand name water blaster models have changed over the years, while we would like to review every model available, budget and time constraints make this goal unrealistic in the near-term. As such, decisions must be made to prioritize review creation.

First and foremost, of course, is whether a particular water blaster model is available. If we cannot get our hands on an item, it simply cannot be reviewed.

Next, we make some initial assumptions on the performance of a water blaster model. Having handled and tested hundreds of different water guns already, we make fairly accurate predictions on how an untested model will perform.

That being said, there are two classes of water blasters that have always interested us. First, as evidenced from the start of Aquatechnology, high performance (e.g. high output, good range) water guns are what inspired the creation of this website in the first place. As such, any water blaster that appears that it should perform well or, of course, to confirm if a water blaster performs poorly, are put higher on the list.

Beyond high performance models, we also have interest in testing unique or intriguing water blaster models. Some water blasters are intended for use by younger users. While such models may not be too useful in large scale water wars, the earlier children are introduced to the joys of water fights, the more likely they will continue enjoying water fights as they grow, seeking out higher performance water blasters once they can physically handle them.

Taken together, we aim to review the models that look like they should be the top performers for their brand. Beyond those, interesting-looking or novel water blaster models may be tested. Time and availability remaining, other less-notable models may be tested and, of course, we remain open to others’ suggestions and feedback if we end up not doing a deep review on a particular model or if a water blaster model is available from another manufacturer that we had overlooked, thusfar.

In the end, we hope to review the most notable of the newest water gun models and fill in more as time and access permits. 2016 looks to be a fun year for water blaster testing at iSoaker.com. Soak on and Leave NO one dry!

2016 Water Warriors Water Gun Size Comparison

water_warriors_line_2016A picture is worth a thousand words – this is no exception. This picture of the known new products for the 2016 Water Warriors brand water blaster line shows the relative size distribution between the various models. One aspect that I only thought of more recently is that while this gives a sense of the differences in the heights and lengths of the different water gun models, this picture does not do a good job distinguishing the differing widths. The Water Warriors Gargantua is definitely the longest, but it is not as wide as the Water Warriors Xenon (2016).

Happy New Year – Welcome, 2016

Happy New Year – welcome, 2016!

2015 was an interesting year in the world of water guns and water blasters. Elastic pressure blasters returned with the release of the Water Warriors Waterlord, but it was only available in Canada. The Nerf Super Soaker line didn’t release anything notable for 2015, but information on upcoming 2016 air-pressure based Nerf Super Soaker models appeared in mid-October, one of the earliest dates new water gun information has appeared online.

Granted, by mid-December, iSoaker had the honor of unveiling upcoming Water Warriors 2016 water blaster models.

With samples of both Water Warriors and Nerf Super Soaker brand water blasters already in-hand, though the winter has just begun, we will be busy at the start of 2016 measuring as many statistics and reporting our findings on these new models as quickly as possible.

Beyond new water guns, iSoaker.com, itself, is sporting some revised styling and new features, particular on the Water Blaster / Water Gun Reviews Listing as well as on individual water blaster review pages. More granularity was added regarding how the different pressurization classes are noted and options to sort by them works, too. Specifically, air pressure now differentiates between pressurized reservoir and pressure chamber systems while elastic pressure now includes insight on bladder, diaphragm, and/or spring systems. There are some items where specifics have not been added yet due to some level of uncertainty, but those are mostly for novelty-type items.

2015 was fun, but ’tis now time to bid thee adieu.  All-in-all, 2016 looks like it’ll be starting off great and we hope things get even better as the year progresses!

New Sorting Capabilities on iSoaker.com

The iSoaker.com Review/Product Listing can now be sorted by Air – Pressurized Reservoir and Air – Pressure Chamber water guns. Will likely work on adding the ability to sort by Elastic – Spring, Elastic – Bladder, and Elastic – Diaphragm systems as well. such changes take time since it involved properly updating the database as well as the website query modules and displays.

Meet the Water Warriors Gargantua

The Water Warriors Gargantua is the largest of the new Water Warriors-brand water blasters for 2016 by Alex Brands Buzz Bee Toys Holdings. It features an elastic diaphragm pressure chamber and nozzle selector with three settings. More testing is needed to determine how well this blaster performs – more info to come.

water_warriors_gargantua_box01

Meet the Water Warriors Aqua Wheel (2016)

The Water Warriors Aqua Wheel is a semi-small, pump-action water blaster for 2016 by Alex Brands Buzz Bee Toys Holdings. As its name suggests, it has a novelty feature in that pumping causes the visible top-mounted fly wheel to spin. The wheel can be spun with or without water and does not require any batteries to function. The trigger is purely ornamental. More information on this water blaster to come…

water_warriors_aqua_wheel_box01

Re-Meet the Water Warriors Xenon (2016 Edition)

The original Water Warriors Xenon was released back in 2005. The 2016 version of the Water Warriors Xenon by Alex Brands Buzz Bee Toys Holdings appears mostly identical except that the pre-charger toggle button is now replaced by a lever-switch. Testing is needed to see how similarly this new version compares to the original.

water_warriors_xenon2016_box01Unfortunately, at present, there is no sign of a 2016 Version of the Water Warriors Krypton.