Motorola RAZR V3 Unlocked Phone with Camera and Video Player--U.S. Version with Warranty (Silver)

I ordered this phone to replace a worn-out Razr that I've had for a few years. I love my Razr; it's the perfect phone for someone who does not need a fancy iPhone, Blackberry, touchscreen, etc. I expected a completely brand new phone, unlocked, direct from the manufacturer.

The phone was locked (it needed a code) and had a "Refurbished" label. T-Mobile and Amazon could not help me so I called Motorola. I provided the MSN and IMEI codes (one-of-a-kind ID numbers assigned in the factory) from the phone, and he said the codes were not in the database, meaning the phone had been sold by a carrier or refurbished.

I asked Amazon for a replacement. The replacement phone did not have a "Refurbished" label and did not ask for an unlock code; I inserted my SIM card and made and received calls. However, the phone has AT&T logos, screensavers, browser links, etc. While it was technically unlocked, it was not what I expected. The next morning, all the keys and buttons stopped working. The phone was a complete dud after less than one day of use.

This time I asked Amazon for a refund. I guess I could ask for a third phone, but I'm sick of this and I found a much better price and warranty on the exact same item at another retailer.

This page does not state that this phone may be refurbished, may have carrier branding, or may be locked. In my experience all of these things were true. Two different customer service representatives told me that every time they send me a replacement, it is from the same batch that Motorola sold them so it may have the same problems as the phone I'm returning.

Bottom line: Amazon admits that, when you order this item, they don't know if you will receive the product described on this page.

I bought this phone in July,2009 and it stopped working in Jan,2010. Phone comes with 1year warranty.

We left message on the phone number provided on warranty card no one calls back.

Sent email to address provided on warranty card.. email does not get through.

So don't count on warranty as it suggests..

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I bought this as a replacement phone for my Father. He loved the Razr phone but as new models came out he upgraded, tried 2 others but never really liked them as well as the Razr V3. The carrier did not carry them any more so the search was on. I found this on Amazon, good price, quick delivery and as Advertised. The phone has worked well out of the box and my Father is very happy to be using what he considers the perfect phone. I would recomend the seller and this phone for an easy to use, dependable unit.

Read Best Reviews of Motorola RAZR V3 Unlocked Phone with Camera and Video Player--U.S. Version with Warranty (Silver) Here

Having used the razr v3 for a month or two at this point, i have no significant complaints. The reception is reasonable, better than the 3 year old Nokia 6822 that my wife uses, but not as good as many other phones of newer makes and models. The phone when first turned on begins in Spanish but automatically switched to English as soon as the network was accessed.

The speakerphone is not worthwhile and is only used when absolutely necessary as there is poor voice quality on the other end and the output sound is scratchy and sounds as though the speaker is blown. Another point of frustration I've experienced with the razr is an increase in the voice echo when speaking with other cell phones, although I'm not certain if the fault is the phones or my current networks' issue.

Overall, I feel like this phone is a reasonable purchase for 100 dollars for an unlocked phone and I'm satisfied with it. In fact, I'm considering purchasing another to upgrade the reception of my wife's service, but not so sold on the value as to make it a no brainer-type decision.

Other functions such as bluetooth, camera, video camera etc. work as expected and provide satisfactory results.

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The phone arrived about a week after I ordered it. The back of the phone would not stay snapped on with the battery in place, and I sent email to the vendor, but it was the subsequent seller feedback that produced a response. We swapped about one email a day regarding the back cover. I do not know if the fellow was busy, or if I was on a leash. (I suspect the latter.) After about four days of emails, the seller sent a new cover.

I have not yet received said cover, though the email tells me it's in the mail, but being in a hurry, I applied tape to the back cover, and proceeded to get the phone ready for use. I had forgotten the pure simplicity that is this phone. However, that pleasure was not to last.

First, the phone is not new as indicated in the sales copy. It's a refurbished device that was first sold for use on the T-Mobile network, which is apparent when the phone comes on. It's also apparent from the back cover being a different shade of silver from the rest of the phone, and then, of course, there's the problem with the cover popping off.

The phone makes calls. It sends texts. It will take pics. However, it will not send a picture to another phone (MMS). After some delay, an error message appears on the screen indicating a "send" error. There is no suggestion I've found for tweaking the network settings to make MMS function.

I'm at a loss regarding what to do about this phone.

Update (25 October 2010) The replacement cover arrived today. It is wrong on two counts. First, it has two tabs at the bottom whereas the phone only has one slot. Second, the cover is too short. I sent return email to that effect.

Update (28 October 2010) Yesterday, the seller requested the IMEI number for the phone. I suppose the intent is to resolve the MMS issue. Given that T-Mobile and AT&T do not appear to use the same frequency for 3G, I doubt much will happen there. Then again, the seller could be looking for a back cover that fits AND stays on.

Update (29 October 2010) After sending the IMEI number for the phone twice yesterday, it was requested once more today. The request came with a note that a return shipping label would soon be sent.

Update (02 December 2010) Toward the middle of November, this mess all ended. The phone returned to the vendor. The sale was reversed.

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Haier DVD101B 5.1 Channel Home DVD Player, Black

• Compatible with DVD, VCD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, JPEG
• Progressive scan with 5.1 Channel Audio Output
• Dolby Digital AC3 Decoder
• Supports Multi-languages, OSD, and multi-angles
• Full function remote

I often route for the underdog when it comes to DVD players. Most people usually opt for the name brands, but not me. I have owned a number of off-brand machines

over the years, and many have suited me quite well. This player is no exception. I was immediately impressed with the exceptionally clear picture, and bright colors I experienced when using the component video inputs through my older Sharp CRT TV set. This DVD player is a real gem. Although it is advertised as being a black player, it is not. It is a bright, shiny metallic silver color, and has a very solid feel to it. The picture is truly amazing, and not at all what I expected for the price. If you're looking for something nice that won't break your budget, this Haier will fit the bill nicely. With its wide array of features, and solid construction, you simply can't go wrong for the price. A very good buy.

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This is a very good DVD player, totally region code free, and the price is amazing. I would recommend it to friends.

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After just receiving the DVD player (which arrived in excellent condition), the appearance is very nice. It is sleek and not overly large. For the price, this product does exactly what you need. We only watched one movie so far and after messing with the [very basic and not picture-adjustment-friendly ex: tint and brightness features) menu options and were finally able to view the first movie just fine.

No issues with the actual play of the DVD player, as it ran smoothly.

The only other issue we had was the delay between the remote and the unit. When you find the sweet spots on the buttons to get them to work properly, there is sometimes a delay and the 'selected option' onscreen will fly through the options to match the amount of times the button was pressed (so patience is mandatory unless you want to watch the 'highlighted option' go nuts!!)

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Only had this unit s few weeks & it played fine,then the very day I threw away the box I went to play a movie & it would not go past the fbi warning,so I opened & closed it several times & finally went only to freeze up many times.Brand new movies to.So instead of ttrying to return with no box,I lose 40$ because I smashed into little bits then into the trash.I dont know if there are any good players out there that will play more than a few weeks or months,what a peice of crap!

Marantz AV8003 Networking Preamplifier

• Brand New Cosmetics, derived from Reference.32bit DSP.
• XM HD Ready with discrete IR commands.HDMI (v1.3) Repeating: 4-In / 2-Out.
• Dolby TrueHD, DD Plus, Dolby Digital EX, Pro Logic IIx,
• dts-HD Master Audio, DTS 96/24, ES (Discrete 6.1/Matrix6.1)
• 192 kHz/24-bit D/A & A/D converters for all channels

Although presented as an audio/video controller, the AV8003 shines brightest on the audio side. The newest uncompressed codecs from DTS and Dolby are simply phenomenal when played through this unit. I'm using a Marantz DV9600 and an Oppo Digital BD-83 for my front end and they both sound awesome. I'm using an Anthem A5 connected to the AV8003 using balanced cables for amplification. Speakers are Paradigm Reference Studio 100 v2 L/R. Paradigm Servo 15 subwoofer. Paradigm Reference Center and surrounds.

If you are looking to use this unit to do video scaling, look elsewhere. Fortunately for me both the Oppo and Marantz players have excellent video and the Oppo has a plethora of video scaling options so that I just set the AV8003 on pass-thru. The AV8003 uses Anchor Bay's video scaler which is the same one used in DVDO products so its not a bad choice. Its just that the audio is what grabs attention.

Using the Audyssey MultEQ® setup is a breeze and the results are terrific. The Audyssey system creates multiple equalization curves that you can toggle through and select the one that pleases you most. Each channel can be manually calibrated and equalized if you like tweaking things. You can even display the curves on your TV which I found entertaining, especially comparing my settings to those of the Audyssey system. If equalizers leave you queasy, just choose source direct and bypass the tone controls completely. I personally believe that this is the way to go for stereo sources in particular. The DV9600 has some really good DACs so I play my CDs using the analog connections to the AV8003. I'm no expert on analog stages, but the 8003 trumps the SR19 by a small margin and to my ears, equals the sound quality of some expensive 2-channel only controllers I've listened to. Where images wavered from side to side with the SR19, the AV8003 locks each instrument and voice into place and holds them there. The depth and width of the sound stage equals that of the SR19 which also had the ability to make it seem as though the sound is coming from somewhere beyond your speakers.

I replaced my Marantz SR19 receiver with the AV8003 after spending many a night agonizing over the prospect of retiring the SR19. It was absolutely the best sounding receiver I've ever listened to. The opportunity to reduce the cable clutter behind my equipment rack was the straw that tipped the scales in favor of the AV8003.

My only gripe with the AV8003 is the remote controller. If I had been unable to find a suitable replacement for it, I would have sent the whole unit back. It is that bad! There is not enough space on this web site to describe the frustrations I experienced trying to program and use that thing! It is, by far, the worst remote I've ever used. Nothing about it is intuitive. Programming it to control your system is an exercise in futility. If you decide to purchase the AV8003, do yourself a big favor: Buy a Logitech Harmony remote control. I'm using the Harmony 890 and I love it.

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g8 two piece pre/power amp first I'm using onkyo 989 I want to upgrade the system for today hd formet first I chose denon avcai hd and select for the demo nice but the sonic performance is not so good my ears and mind still have question after denon I chose yamha z11nice sound but not what I'm looking for yamha don't have basic. For today recever auddsey setup also hd format not impress my ears .I'm bit confuse which system I chose then one of my friend confirm me about new marantz two piece system I search the dealer and fix the time for demo my first reaction after first look of av8003&mm8003 wow killing look and when we on the system with DTs 7.1master audio blue ray the performance and the sonic of the marantz twin system blown me the sound is so smooth just like some one put hot burning knife on the butter..after spending 2hrs in demo I decide to purchase the system .now I'm using marantz pre/power av8003 in my home theater with jamo d6thx

speakers & results you are in a heaven after this setup

my speakers have new life if ur are serious movie lover this system is right choice the sonic performance of the system is far far far far better then denon and any other receiver of this class really GR8....

one thing first propely auddsey mic setup and used best brand 1.3hdmi cable and use blue ray player who forward all hd formet in bit stream to marantz twin system u realy amazed and I'm sure you will spend most of time in your home theater

Apple iPod 40 GB White M9245LL/A (3rd Generation) OLD MODEL

• 40 GB model holds up to 10,000 songs; supports MP3, AAC, WAV, MP3 VBR, Audible (6), and AIFF formats
• Mac and Windows compatible; FireWire and USB 2.0 interface for fastest digital transfer available
• Included docking station makes charging and synching easy
• More than 8 hour battery life on a 3 hour charge (1-hour fast charge to 80% capacity)
• Features redesigned and backlit navigation; includes dock, wired remote control, earbud headphones, carrying case, and AC adapter

I've owned all three 40GB players available today: Creative Zen, RCA Lyra, Apple iPod. This is the review I wish I had read before I started shopping. It was a originally more comprehensive but I had to trim it to 1000 words.



For the most part, the Creative Zen has the best features of the three, as well as the best price. It sounds like a no brainer except for the fact that these things break like crazy! If you read some of the other reviews on here, you'll see a few people mention that their headphone jack shorted out when they dropped the player....well mine shorted out while the player was sitting on my desk not moving at all. I don't know a single person who bought one of these players and didn't have their headphone jack malfunction! Many reviewers suggest buying an extended warranty because of this problem. I would most definitely agree with them on that one, but personally I don't have the patience to wait a few weeks every time the player decides to stop working. Those warrantees are supposed to be purchased just in case something goes wrong; not because something most likely will! The Lyra from the moment it came out of the box to the moment it stopped working for no apparent reason, four hours later, was on the whole a piece of junk. That said...on to the comparisons.



PRICE: As just about every anti-iPod reviewer mentions, THE IPOD IS MORE EXPENSIVE AND DOES PRETTY MUCH THE SAME THING. The iPod is basically the BMW of mp3 players...the other mp3 player work like, and cost about as much as a Kia. They all do basically the same thing, but the cheaper ones are cheaper for a reason!



SIZE: All three players are smaller than a walkman, so it's kind of silly to even discuss this, but it seems to be a hot topic in the other reviews. From largest to smallest the players are ranked as follows: Lyra, Zen, iPod. The Lyra is the only one of the three which will not fit easily in your pocket. It is the widest /longest /heaviest of the bunch, and personally, I hated the way it felt in my hand. The Zen and the iPod were both a pleasure to hold.



CONTROLS/NAVIGATION: iPod gets first place here simple because it's touch sensitive navigation wheel allows you to get from the first album in your collection to the last in seconds and it stops on a dime anywhere in between. The Zen's controls are very good however it takes longer to scroll through your entire collection and when it really starts moving fast, it continues scrolling after you release the button sometimes skipping past another 50-75 albums! The Lyra had decent navigation, but the buttons had to be pushed more than once before they responded almost half of the time! The Zen and the iPod can be operated easily with one hand.



PLAYLISTS/SONG RATING: The Zen wins here without a doubt. It is the only one of the three where you can create, edit (even while it's playing) and SAVE multiple play lists on the player itself without connecting it to a computer. The iPod allows you to make ONE play list on the fly, which cannot be edited or saved.



The Lyra allows you to tag songs you like or don't like and it makes play lists of each...yes, it makes a playlist of songs that you tell it you DO NOT LIKE...if that doesn't explain what's wrong with this product, nothing will! The iPod allows you to rate songs 1-5 stars on the player, and then make a play list automatically based on those ratings when connected to a computer.



BATTERY: Again, Zen is the winner here. Not only does it offer a battery that lasts 14 hours instead of iPod and Lyra's 8 hour batt. it is also the only player of the three where you can remove and replace the battery when it deteriorates with age as all rechargeables do. It should be noted that the battery times I listed are the official times given by the manufacturers. The Zen actually lasts about 10 hours the other two go between 5 and 6 before needing a charge.



SCREEN: The Zen not only has the biggest screen of the bunch, it also scrolls the album title in the directory screen allowing you to see the whole thing instead of just the first few words.



TRANSFER TO PLAYER: All three units use USB 2.0, the iPod also can be used with Firewire.



TRANSFER FROM PLAYER: The Zen allows you to transfer music freely from your player to any computer loaded with it's software. The iPod does not allow this however third party software that can be purchased and used to pull songs from the iPod. In all honest, the Lyra broke before I could find out if you can pull songs off of it.



SOFTWARE: iTunes is easy to use and offers tons of ways to organize your music. Creative Media Manager takes a lot of getting used to but is decent once you figure it out. Musicmatch, which comes with the Lyra is garbage. It`s slow, difficult to figure out at times, and constantly badgers you to buy the upgrade to its premium version.



EXTRAS: The only one that actually has extra features is the iPod which comes loaded with 4 different games, the ability to read text documents that are stored on the hard drive on the player's screen, a date book, and an address book. The Lyra's ONLY advantage over the other players is the fact that it comes with a complete car kit (charger/tape adapter)....which is pretty nice, but useless when the player turns itself into a paperweight after just a few hours. All three players come with a case....iPod's is the only one which does not give you access to the player's controls when it's in the case.



Hope this helped.

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The iPod is awesome. That's a fact. So let me dwell on some practical advice here:

1. Instead of this item, buy the newer version of the Apple iPod 40gb (manufacturer cat no. M9268LL/A). The new version costs the same (as of October 2004) but has 12 hours of play instead of 8 hours. They look the same with similar description so BE SURE TO LOOK AT THE CAT NO.

2. Most likely you'll need a carrying case. Budget that in. The Apple one is nice but is around $50.

3. If you import a lot of CDs, your desktop or laptop might not have enough space on the hard drive. We're talking 40gb here! A good solution is to buy an additional hard drive. This can also serve as a backup (it's very depressing to import CD after CD and then have your hard drive crash...).

4. A very cost effective way to get an extra hard drive is to shop at your local computer store (e.g. CompUSA), look for the ATA drive that's on sale this week, and then, if you have a laptop, also get the "enclosure" that makes it into an external USB 2.0 drive. I just got a 160gb Seagate drive + the enclosure for around (...). Also great for backup of your music + pictures + hard drive etc.

Read Best Reviews of Apple iPod 40 GB White M9245LL/A (3rd Generation) OLD MODEL Here

Update: It went dead, probably because of a really bad power surge here, and Apple replaced it without questions in 72 hours. Nice work! My original review is appended. ****************************************************************

In what has to be the slickest execution of a new piece of hardware yet, this Apple-linked but PC-compatible product will make all portable music players obsolete in no time flat. I have been following trends in this area for a long time, and my last big MP3 player investment was in a SONICblue Jukebox. Wow, how fast things evolve! That machine, cutting edge 2 years ago, had a 6 gig hard drive and allowed only for rather slow uploading of music through its balky software interface via a USB 1.0. In addition, its organizational abilities were limited.

The iPod is about 1/10 the size of the old Jukebox, absolutely ultra high tech looking, with backlighting that awes and controls that work intuitively, and it uploads easily through a firewire or a USB 2.0 (optional) connection.

Music can be categorized and recalled quickly, with the scroll control making it all simple to access.

Sound quality is awesome, its earbuds light years ahead of anything similar. Capacity is incredible in the 40 gig model, holding 10,000 songs!(the 10 gig unit will hold 2500 songs, 15 gig unit will hold 3,700 songs, the 30 gig unit about twice that number). Battery life (6-8 hours when fully charged) is just fine. The (optional only in the 10 gig model, included with the others) cradle will recharge and synch the unit to your PC, but I bought the optional car charger for longer road trips. I also bought the FM transmitter that attaches neatly to the unit and allows you to play the iPod through your stereo sans wires, though the cassette adapter works better for that purpose.

A word about Apple's customer service: WOW! I ordered my unit on a Sunday, with the additional $19 for custom engraving on its silver back. In an hour I got an email that my order was being processed, and in 6 hours I got an email that it had shipped! The email included a tracking link, and I watched it move from Taiwan across the world in 2 days. I got it on Tuesday evening (!) and it was factory sealed/shrink wrapped and in fine condition. When I opened it (even the packaging is high tech) and took it out of its protective inner wrapper, I was delighted to find the engraving was there and was done just perfectly.

If delivering a great product and offering perfect service is to be lauded, Apple must be given the highest kudos possible.

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The iPod is one of the first Apple products I have ever purchased...before the iPod the only apple product that I had the displeasure of using was QuickTime. However, with the extremely favorable reactions that the iPod recevied from many different magazines I went out to a store and decided to at least give it a shot. I fell in love instantly with its ease of use and look.

So I purchased the 40 GB model. The first thing I noticed about the product was its rather...unique packaging. After finally realzing how to open it and finding the rather small unit I followed the directions located in the iPod manual and connected it up to my PC. Installation was anything but easy. The software automatically overwrote a newer version of MusicMatch jukebox and any time I tried to open MusicMatch it only would crash on me. Thus, I was forced to uninstall Music Match completely download a new version off the internet and install it. Once this was completed I succeeded in getting the iPod connected successfully and working properly. However, using Musicmatch to transfer files to iPod was a horrible experience in general.

Via a tip from a magazine I installed Apple iTunes which is now available for the Pc and found an excellent very fast product which worked with the iPod flawlessly. If not for iTunes exteremly excellent intergration with the iPod it is quite likely I would have returned the unit however iTunes completely changed my opinion of the iPod and made it actually a pleasure to use.

The actual iPod unit itself is very nice. A exteremly stylish exterior and very easy to use controls and designs make it a pleasure to hold and use. Except for the fact that it can get dirty very easily there is almost no trouble at all in transporting it around. I have gone over quite a few bumpy roads and some quick jogging and found there to be absolutely no skipping even after a 10 minute+ exposure to conditions that make my Sony CD player skip like crazy.

The only problem I really experienced in the use of the product was the lack of ability to create and SAVE a playlist directly from the unit. For example you can select and browse through all your songs and make a temporary playlist using the iPod itself. However, in order to save a playlist it is required that you use iTunes or Musicmatch and import it in that fashion. This can be quite annoying when you are like me and like to make many playlists on the fly corresponding to your emotions. However, this is a small problem when looked at regarding the rest of the unit.

One other small qualm I had was that I have quite a few WAV files that are themselves compressed in mpeg layer 2 format within the WAV format. These files do not play properly on the iPod so if you have a lot of these for some reason (I do) be prepared for lots of converting.

The last issue I had with the iPod was that it only contains 1 Dock connector to firewire plug and this plug is required to both dock the iPod to a computer and also to connect the iPod to an AC socket. If another Firewire plug was connected it would be quite nice.

All in all I was pleasently surprised with the iPod in general. The player works quite well. My main tip to other users is to not even bother with the Music Match jukebox and instead download the new Windows version of iTunes available on Apple's website.

My iPod is the single most-used gadget I own BAR NONE! iPods work with both Macs and Windows machines.

Plug your iPod into your computer and almost instantly every song on your computer is sucked onto the iPod for transport anywhere. The iPod has the capacity to hold every song I own (my entire CD collection and it's a big collection)! I now carry EVERY CD I OWN around with me in a gadget that's smaller than a pack of cards. And best of all, it will play them THROUGH MY CAR'S STEREO SYSTEM, THROUGH ANY HOME (or office) STEREO SYSTEM, or, of course, through earbuds while exercising, hiking, etc. All with remarkably high quality. When I play the iPod through my home stereo, I cannot distinguish the reproduction quality from that of the source CD itself hence, I have not touched a CD since I got my iPod (except to load it onto my computer).

The iPod is the kind of product that puts a human face on technological advancement ... and it's smiling!

Samsung DVD-M301 DVD Player

• DVD player with CD-R-compatible dual-laser diode pickup
• Convenient front-panel shuttle dial
• Component-video outputs for optimal video connection
• MP3- and CD-R-compatible decoder
• Universal joystick remote control

I have had great luck with a Samsung VCR and Samsung DVD-709 DVD Player in the past so I was loyal to my confidence in Samsung products by purchasing the Samsung DVD-M301 DVD Player. What I found out was that not all DVDs would play correctly in this machine. I had played 4 movies without any trouble and was impressed by the video display quality of this model. But when I tried to play Artisan Entertainment Studio release "Bad Boys" with actor Sean Penn it would not play the audio for this movie at all! This is not some high-tech movie either it is a basic real-life film made in 1983 with no special effects like most of the newer movies have. It displayed the video portion just fine but there was absolutely no sound during the playing of this DVD. The movie had played fine on my older Samsung DVD-709 model so I know it was not a problem with the DVD itself.

I wanted to know if it was a defective player or a product design flaw in the M301 Player so I took it to a local store who had the same model Samsung DVD-M301 Player that I could try the "Bad Boys" DVD with. Well it was the same result with the store's player also NO AUDIO! That made my mind up for me to return the Samsung DVD-M301 and I purchased a Panasonic DVD-RV31 player instead. The Panasonic plays the movie just fine audio and all. I did not feel comfortable keeping the Samsung not knowing how many other DVDs I would buy or rent that would have similar trouble.

I am writing an email to Samsung about this player and my experience and hopefully soon they will address the problem and correct it on future models. Until then BEWARE!

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This DVD Player has it all, it can play CDR VCDs, 74 mins. AudioCD, 80 mins. Audio CD (some players dont support 80mins.) Havent tried CDRW yet, The MP3 support is good but a bit buggy forwarding tracks. So if you are buying a DVD Player make sure it can play CDR and MP3 and this has it all.

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First of all, a response to the reviewer who had problems with brightness and/or jumpy DVD playback: this DVD player, like all others made in the U.S., has circutry called "Macrovision" that is designed to prevent you from copying DVDs onto your VCR. The technical details are unimportant, but the result is that you cannot connect your DVD to your VCR and pass the signal through to the t.v.; instead, you'll have to connect it to the t.v. separately, using the video and audio jacks, or through an RF modulator box (you can get them at Radio Shack). Past Samsung DVD players allowed you to bypass the Macrovision protection by using certain secret codes on the remote control, but this model doesn't seem to support that.

Besdies the fact that you are prevented from setting up your entertainment center the way you want, this model does have a few other pesky features. The machine takes an unusually long time to read a disc upon insertion and recognize whether it is a music CD, mp3, or DVD and respond accordingly. Also, I've sometimes had difficulty pulling up the DVD menu while in the middle of a program.

Otherwise, the unit does a good job with the DVDs I've used, including some relatively scratched DVDs from Netflix. Audio quality with both DVDs and CDs is good, although I haven't tried it with mp3's. The remote is ok, although there are lots of tiny, somewhat badly labeled buttons and a joystick that takes some getting used to.

If you don't need the CD/mp3 features, you're better off buying an older Samsung model-the 700 and 900 series can be easily reprogrammed to turn off region coding and Macrovision. If you do want the audio features, this model supplies them at a decent price, but be prepared for some annoyances as well.

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Overall, this player gives an excellent picture with a reasonably easy to use remote. Main reason purchased was to hopefully enjoy what Sound & Vision magazine touts as the first player to be able to view any DVD in a full screen mode. Not so--any DVD in 2:35 format will not fill the screen when the "Fit" button is pushed on the remote. Symbol indicates "DVD software will not allow." I believe we are like many others who have resisted DVD's due to the widescreen only format on most DVD's. My wife would rather view full screen VHS! The M301 does represent excellent value, however. I'm keeping it!

This DVD player is flat out awesome! I've been impressed with it ever since I received it in the mail. It's great that it plays DVD's but it makes it all the more better that it's able to play mp3 files and regular CD's. I recommend this machine for anyone looking for a DVD player.

Aiptek DV-S ISDV32B MP4 Digital Camcorder and Still Camera with Built-In MP3 Player (Blue)

I have had this video camera for over a year, originally purchased to record my dance practices. For $, it has definitely done the job, and with indoor lighting the quality is surprisingly good. The most amazing thing about this camera though, is it is tough. A couple of months ago I dropped it from a height of almost 5ft, which cracked the back casing but the camera still works as well as ever! You can see my Belly Dancing video at to see the video quality after I dropped the camera. The colors are a bit off but for $50 I didn't really expect much, the colors were not affected by the drop. I am upgrading to another camera though, because this does not do well in the bright sunlight. At noon and other very bright times this camera does not hold details on faces well at all from a distance of more than 12 feet. Still, I am giving this camera a very high rating because it is tough, inexpensive, and more than met my expectations.

Got it for my 14 year old for his birthday and he loves it! I am surprised at the clarity of pictures and video. He has made lots of "movie" clips and has had a lot of fun with it. It is small enough to take everywhere, but big enough to handle easily.

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I am really disappointed in this product. I read reviews from others that seemed fairly positive. I purchased this for my 8 year old son as a Christmas gift and felt the price point was great and the features seemed enough for his use. From the time we got it, it seemed to have poor battery life. It almost seemed as if closing the screen didn't turn the camera off. I decided to invest a few more bucks and get the best batteries I could. I bought Energizer ultimate lithium and loaded them up. Almost immediately the screen displayed "low battery" despite the fact that the battery meter showed it as full. I tried other batteries and the same thing happened. I tried everything I could think of to get it to work; nothing helped.

So off I went to e-mail tech support. The only response was "remove the memory card" and "use nimh rechargeable batteries". What? Nowhere did I see that this camera only supported rechargeable batteries, and one would assume that if it has a memory card slot it supports memory cards, right?

Unfortunately I am beyond my 30 day return policy so it looks like I have a blue and silver paperweight. I would stay away from this camera and maybe spend a little more to get a brand name that is more reliable.

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The batteries do okay unless you are in record mode. Then they will drain in about 2 minutes! Unless you have several rechargeables on standby, I would not recommend this item. There is NO built in battery with AC power cord!

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I gave this to my teenaged grandson for Christmas along with a memory card. No complaints yet but it has only been a few weeks.

TaoTronics TT-CD02 2.5" TFT LCD HD Car Dash Camera DVR Camera Recorder Black Box with 6 IR LED Nigh

I just purchased this model from another vendor. First, this is in no way an HD recorder. The video is 640x480 AVI at 30fps. I've been through every menu I can find and there are no HD settings. The instruction pamphlet says it is only 640x480.

What do I like about this: It was only $30. The video is acceptable if you want to document incidents while you drive. Each 2 minute video is about 100 Meg in size and it is pretty easy to find the clip you need. You can turn the audio on or off. The motion detect is good. Just get in the car, listen for the start up chirp when you start the car and go. You can put a date & time on the image.

What's not so great: The video. The resolution almost guarantees you cannot make out signs & license plates. If the sun is in view, you'll see a red spot where the sensor is overloaded. This hasn't caused a problem yet, but I don't think it's a good thing.The mount is not that sturdy, but is adequate. It hangs down from a suction cup on the windshield. I may make a block to sit it on the dashboard for a less conspicuous look. But that may be a bit dodgy as you next the flip down display to aim the camera or look at the menu settings. You have to be careful when handling the camera as the general construction isn't that sturdy. It has 6 IR LEDs on the front. They do pretty much nothing.

Overall: It's a decent little camera for the money. Emphasis is on "for the money". It is not a particularly well built or high performing unit, but I think I will have some fun with it. If I had to guess, within 6 months I'll buy a legitimate 1080 resolution camera and move up to that.

Update: 12/27/12. I have spent much more time with the camera and have stumbled upon the high def settings. But, They are not actually hi def.It is the original 640x480 interpolated (extrapolated?) to hi def. The video is still only so-so, but I like the camera more as time goes by. I am planning on getting something better in the spring when road trip season returns. So far the Sony AS10 is looking pretty good to me.

I've opened the pack and appears be good, the finish is raw plastic, so don't wait glossy surfaces, recommend only VGA mode in video, others is too noisy, good supply in wires and the suction base is good, for the price is good value.

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VideoSecu CCTV Security Camera Built-in 1/3" SONY CCD Outdoor Indoor Weatherproof Night Vision IR I

I bought two VideoSecu IR801K Indoor/Outdoor Day/Night Vision Security Cameras. They both work great. I have mounted one outside so far. The daytime color view is real nice and the night vision is too. Good viewing range in the dark. The audio is clear no phantom sounds. One can see the IR lights in the dark if you look for them but not blatantly so. The cable is of good quality and the VHS adapters are solid. Good price for a solid product.

I bought this camera at the same time I bought a higher priced unit from the same manufacturer. I was surprised that this unit provides much better performance than the higher priced unit which appeared to have better features; a higher LED count and a higher TVL count!

This is a mid-sized unit which provides excellant IR night vision out to about 50 feet. The visual clarity is very good, both day and night. The focus is automatic and appears to work well.

I own three different IR cameras and this one is undoubtly the best of the three.

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I bought one of these to connect to a new averdigi card I purchased for my computer. To be honest, the motivation was that it had a Sony image sensor a good number of IR led's and one of the lowest prices I've seen. So far this camera has been excellent. It's not the sharpest resolution, and certainly doesn't compare to what you would get for a lot more money, but for a simple camera it's great.

The picture quality both day and night is good, body and mount are solid. You can see the IR LED's at night (faint red glow), but nothing obvious or distracting. I wish the mount had a little more movement, but you can make it do what you want for the most part.

The 3.6mm lens gives a nice wide view, even at close distances, excellent for an entry, which is what I'm using this one for.

So far it's been a good camera that I would recommend, and will personally be buying at least a couple more of.

Read Best Reviews of VideoSecu CCTV Security Camera Built-in 1/3" SONY CCD Outdoor Indoor Weatherproof Night Vision IR I Here

Video quality is avg. IR is good for 20ft then quickly disapates.

Placed order on 9-15 and finally received on 9-26.

I should get a refund on shipping?

Would recommend for non-critical areas that do not require high

definition. Seems durable and is easily installed.

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I purchased this camera for my DEFENDER security system. The original system was sold with only 4 cameras, by design.

I purchased an additional three low profile under eve mount for the front of the house. You would not notice them in the daytime unless you are looking for them.

At night, the infrared glows as a warning to anyone that needs to be warned. (My wife likes it that way). The final camera for the system is the VideoSecu above. This is a rather large outdoor camera (3X) as compared to the original Defender cameras. It appears sturdy and well made. The optics are as good as the original cameras with a wider field of view. The night performance is as good as most quality night (B&W) cameras.

The camera mount is very sturdy. The price with free shipping is very attractive. The VideoSecu cable is of better quality than most. The only reason I did not give this five star is that focal is not adjustable. This however is nit picking, as this camera is not advertized as an adjustable focal length camera.

VideoSecu will sell you one, if you need this feature.

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SanDisk Sansa Clip Zip 4 GB MP3 Player (Lime)

• Plays music, audiobooks, and podcasts
• FM radio and Voice Recording
• New stopwatch feature
• Plays content from nearly every source (MP3, WMA, secure WMA, Ogg Vorbis, and FLAC)
• AAC for DRM-free iTunes compatibility

I am a big old fat geek that recently got into doing...(GASP!)...exercising.

I have many MP3 capable products and reasons why I am very fond of this little one for my new found effort. I have the following list of products and have tried my:

Nexus S (too big and heavy for running, no physical buttons)

iPod touch 4th Gen (Big, expensive at the storage size i wanted and no buttons for music controls)

iPod Nano 4thGen (little, has a clip, but why the hell can't they include buttons?)

iPod shuffle (not enough storage and I don't want to mix in my metal songs from lifting weights into my up beat running songs...)

Likes:

The clip Zip sounds great, is very small, has a clip and has physical buttons.

It fits every need i want. The bonus is the MicroSD slot, I can not stress this enough. Skip the 8GB version and get the 4GB and pair it with a 16 or 32GB card. Bam 20-36GB of storage, insanely small and still clocks in under $100.

FLAC support.

Low rez color screen does what it needs to. Won't knock people over but tells you whats playing with album art.

As for the other areas, the stop watch works like a stop watch...It keeps time and does splits. Not a huge thing and if you are using a polar watch or at a gym, the machine you are on will do just as well and be more convenient. In a pinch it works.

The FM radio works fine. I live in a rural area, so my station choices are limited. From my experience, it works just fine if you are in an area with good recption.

Dislikes:

*UPDATE* MM works on updated firmware...still broken on stock firmware. Drag and drop also works, so you have that going for you.

General gripe: The included headphones are perfect for giving to people you hate. You can use them, i guess, if you want to torture yourself, but like any MP3 player, Apple or otherwise, get some better phones...your ears and your music will appreciate it.

Considering you would need to pay twice as much for an iPod with fewer features, no physical buttons and no storage expansion, just to run in a hampster wheel, save your scratch and get this guy. You will be glad you did, as it looks good, sounds good and does a it in a small package that just screams to be used in your fitness routine.

Update of an update: A new firmware patch was released, make sure to update your new Clip Zip or you will experience the "Static Blast" between some of your songs...not fun, but it has been addressed, so make sure to update right away.

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The pros:

- all the benefits of the Clip+: great sound; small; microSD card support; FM radio (with record capability); recorder; gapless play; optional folder navigation; multiple formats support (mp3, wma, ogg vorbis, flac); file drag-and-drop capability; ad hoc playlist creation; cute and appealing

- new: aac file support for DRM-free aac format files; small color screen with album art display; time-of-day indication; "sports mode" with timer and lap time; fast alphabet scrolling in lists; menu customizability; enhanced contemporary feel and, perhaps, sturdiness; improved microSD card fit; improved EQ

The limited cons:

- internal memory maxes out at 8GB; limited what's playing screen information; underlying folder art can make screen readability harder; missing some play-all options; for some users: battery life remains rated at 15 hours; no video capability; greater functionality could be provided to the user (could be handled in future firmware upgrades)

The Clip Zip, the latest in the SanDisk Sansa Clip line, is firmly committed to the Clip line's proven success: a small, cute and attractive, easy-to-use player with great sound. Not much more can be said about the sound: SanDisk got it right with the original Clip and wisely has not tinkered with that, keeping the Clip line at the top of the audio player field. With one exception: while the Clip Zip's EQ options sound improved to my ears, they still can sound harsh--as a general matter, best to leave the EQ options alone.

Physically, the Clip Zip is only a trifle larger than its predecessor, in its long dimension. As before, the body is an attractive, sturdy 2-piece plastic shell that angles out, with a large, permanently attached, sturdy plastic clip occupying its back. The one-piece directional pad on the front of the Clip Zip has been reduced in size to the bottom third of the player's face, with a thin, rectangular select button in its center--some larger-fingered users may have to exercise some care. An inset postage stamp-sized screen occupies the top half of the face of the player. Available in a variety of pleasing colors, my player is an attractive platinum color with a silver-colored directional pad and silver volume rocker and power switches at the left and top sides. The headphone jack remains on the top right side of the player, with a microSD card slot below that, at the bottom; an inserted microSD card now sits totally flush with the player, helping to avoid any inadvertent ejection (although this could make removing the card a trifle more difficult for some). The Clip Zip adopts the micro USB standard for its data and power port at the top left of the player, and comes with a handy short USB/micro USB cable.

In the end, the Clip Zip has a perhaps slightly more contemporary, and sturdy, feel than before, including with its modernized screen graphics and opening and closing exploding screen logo. SanDisk includes with the player a pair of its standard earbud headphones, which many users like--I swap them out for audiophile in-ear phones that complement the player's well-tuned sound.

Beyond these basics, the Clip Zip, like the earlier Clip+, includes microSD card support, making it possible to increase the player's storage five-fold from its maximum 8GB internal storage to a total of 40GB, with a 32GB microSD card. Amazing, for something so small; microSD card slots should be standard in all audio players. All content nicely is seamlessly merged in the Clip Zip's database, or separately can be accessed by folder, as on a computer. The Clip Zip also includes a well-functioning FM radio, with presets and recording capability; new, the display automatically shows the currently-selected radio station's call letters. As before, the Clip Zip has a recorder; gapless play between files--a necessity for live performance recordings; simple drag-and-drop file transfer capability as well as compatibility with music players and aggregators like Windows Media Player; and ad hoc playlist creation (limited to a current, temporary playlist). The Clip Zip also continues Replaygain support to equalize volume between files, and speed control (slow, normal, fast) for podcasts and audiobooks (but, unfortunately, without pitch adjustment, which would be a welcome addition).

With this pedigree in hand, the Clip Zip then takes off. Firmly inviting iTunes users in, the Clip Zip now is compatible with DRM-free aac files (the iTunes standard), in addition to, as before, mp3, wma, protected wma, ogg vorbis and flac formats; iTunes users no longer need convert their aac files (hurting it in the process) to mp3 format. Reflecting the visual age, the Clip Zip trades in the mostly monochrome, text-oriented small screen of its predecessors for a full (albeit postage stamp-sized), well-functioning color screen with album art display and muted album art backgrounds; where album art is not available, the Clip Zip substitutes varying tasteful designs rather than a dry, static picture (no more pictures of a music note for album art-less files). And then, perhaps listening to its audience's earlier suggestions, SanDisk adds in the time-of-day to the player's what's playing screen (many thanks!); a "sports mode" with timer and lap time; fast alphabetical scrolling for content lists--very welcome for those users with lots of content; and the (limited) ability to customize the Clip Zip's top menu to show or exclude function categories (Music, Radio, Books, Voice, Card, Sport).

Users of earlier Clip players will find the operation of the Clip Zip familiar, and largely instinctual. Newcomers will adapt in minutes.

All of this is done in an evolutionary manner, still within the Clip lineage; this is not a new player line. Some users will be disappointed by the 8GB internal memory ceiling; 16GB and 32GB models would be appreciated at this point in time--as well as beyond that for us jukebox users. The player's battery remains rated at 15-hours, typically enough for a full day, but some users would like more; the battery is not user replaceable, given the player's size (some users would prefer otherwise). And there is no video capability (although this only would be minimally useful, given the small screen--but it still would be welcome).

Seemingly as a result of the adoption of album art display, some informational functionality has been lessened on the Clip Zip's what's playing screen: there is no current track number and total tracks information; the current song/file time position is only indicated by a progress bar--there are no elapsed or remaining time indicators; and some of the on-screen information can be a bit harder to see, depending on underlying album art. Also, for some reason, a play-all option, apart from in shuffled mode, has gone missing from most of the playback options--album aficionados will be limited to choosing 1 album at a time or creating playlists. These issues are important for many users--perhaps (hopefully) SanDisk will consider them for future firmware upgrades. (Speaking of which: how about a separate time screen with a clock face, with a few style options?) And the database hindrance from earlier Clip models remains: when files are added to or removed from the microSD card or the card is removed and replaced, the Clip Zip needs to refresh its database, which can take many minutes, depending on the size of the card's contents, during which the player cannot otherwise be used.

In the end, despite some limitations (some of which could be addressed in the future), the Clip Zip is an attractive successor in the Clip line, with enhanced functionality especially of note for those with a library of aac files and for those wanting album art or timing capabilities.

9-12-11 UPDATE as to Audible compatibility with the Clip Zip:

Apparently, people have been finding it impossible to transfer Audible audiobooks to the Clip Zip. In trying myself, I found the same thing--frustrating! In following up, it turns out that Audible needs to update its Audible Manager software, used to transfer Audible audiobooks, etc. to a device, and is working on it. In the meanwhile, see the comments section below for a couple of easy ways to transfer Audible content to the Clip Zip: simple drag-and-drop/copy-and-paste; or using Windows Media Player. In fact, personally, I actually prefer using the drag-and-drop method to having to fire up the Audible Manager just to transfer content over--simpler.

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The Sansa Clip Zip sounded like just what I wanted -a small, inexpensive, clip-on mp3 player to use while I exercise. I was wrong. I listen to audiobooks while I exercise, and despite Sansa's product description the Clip Zip doesn't do that.

When I manually load audiobook mp3 files on the Clip Zip, it classifies them as songs on different albums by one artist. If I select "artist" it plays all the 'track #1s' in sequence and then all the 'track #2s', etc. If I choose "album" it plays that set of files but then I have to search around for the next cryptically-named "album" in the book. That works, sort of, but who wants to stop exercising to fiddle around with an mp3 player for 10 minutes searching for the next section of a book?

When I use Windows Media Player to make a playlist of an audiobook's tracks and then sync them with the Sansa, the process fails -no playlist is on the Sansa and the book is organized exactly as it was using drag-and-drop.

Same thing happens with iTunes, except iTunes itself crashes half the time too.

Audible.com books? Sorry, the audible format is not supported.

If you want to listen to music on a cheap mp3 player, buy the Clip Zip. If you want to play an audiobook, forget about it -it's useless.

Addendum:

Several people have offered comments and work-arounds that have been very helpful. First of all, the problem with Audible compatibility apparently belongs to Audible.com, not SanDisk. Second, Windows Media Player does work with the Clip Zip. Third, even without built-in Audible support, you can manually add Audible books to the Clip Zip.

I've added one star to my rating. It's OK as it is now and when Audible.com (an Amazon subsidiary, BTW) changes the Audible Manager it should move up to "pretty good" rating -actually a "good for the price" rating.

Second addendum (December 15, 2011):

1) I'm told that Audible.com now supports this device.

2) There's a workaround for the problem I had with playing mp3 audiobooks. Both Andy Sexton and John R. Ridley came up with the workaround and posted it in the comments to this review. Quoting Mr. Ridley: "If you put audiobooks into the audiobook folder, or set the genre in the MP3 tags as "AUDIOBOOK" the Clip Zip will handle them properly, with proper resume points and no need to make playlists or anything." Thank you Andy and John!

Third addendum (April 26, 2013)

Apparently here are workarounds for the mp3 file order problem that I experienced.

Fred Langa with WindowsSecrets.com says: "There are other tricks and workarounds, too, that enthusiasts have developed for copying and playing audiobook chapters, MP3s, or other media files in a specific order. For example, see the AnandTech forum thread, 'Tell Windows the order in which to copy files?' (http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=1493981), or the MurrayMoffatt.com article, 'Sort MP3 files on MP3 player' (http://www.murraymoffatt.com/software-problem-0010.html)."

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I bought this little guy to replace a 6th Gen iPad Nano. My main complaints about the Nano:

1. No buttons, difficult to work with it when you are running or working out. Difficult to pause when a co-worker arrives at your desk.

2. I'm a Linux guy. The 6th gen iPod nano is not compatible with any Linux drivers. Will not work with gtk-pod. Running a VM just for an iPod is a drag.

3. You're stuck with the storage size you buy.

Don't get me wrong, I really did like the Nano, but for my usage patterns it was not ideal. The Zip Clip takes care of the above problems and then some.

1. Buttons are easy to find and navigate, even when you are not using your eyes.

2. You can load it just using your raw MP3's or MTP mode using Rhythmbox on Linux, and lots of other music managers on other platforms.

3. Stick a microSD card in it and bam, you now have a 36 GB portable music player.

4. Bonus, the Zip Clip has a custom EQ mode as well as presets, so you can make your music sound just the way you want.

5. Bonus, the Zip Clip supports the leveling encoded in your MP3's or albums. Yes, the iPod has sound check but that's all secret voodoo stuff and only works with their own files.

The size is a bit bigger than the nano but it's made of plastic and is nearly the same weight (Zip Clip is 25 grams, nano is 20.) I clip it on my watchband when I'm working out. It also dangles from my lanyard when I'm working. My RSA fob and badge weigh way more than the Zip Clip.

I'm really happy with this thing, it does exactly what I want it to do. Dealing with the iPod was becoming rather frustrating to a non-Apple guy and I find that the Zip Clip has a couple added features that make it work and sound better than the iPod. Me like.

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Let me start off with the bottom line. Buy this player. Period.

Ok,with that out of the way let me tell you why. I am a complete tech geek. I built my own computer AND server and have the usual assortment of laptops, mobile phones, netbooks, and other assorted tech items. I decided I wanted a compact music player because there are times I don't want to use my mobile phone as a music player. Sometimes I want something really small and light. With my tech background my standards were pretty high for what I wanted out of an MP3 player and of everything I looked at, including the various iPods, this was the ONLY player that met all my criteria.

PROs: Super small and light. In fact, if it had been any smaller it would have been TOO small. One complaint some people have with the newest generation iPod is that it's so small they have a hard time manipulating the controls. The Clip Zip has actual buttons you can press which makes control very easy. And don't worry about accidentally hitting a button and screwing up your music. If you tap the power button on top it locks all the buttons except the volume control so that won't happen.

Has a small screen so you can actually select what you want to hear and displays album art if you have it installed.

All the usual music selection options. You can search by artist, album, song, genera, or even by folder or playlist.

SD CARD SLOT!!! This was the most important feature to me. It will take up to a 32 GB MicroSD card. 32 Gigs. Do you understand how much music will fit on that? I have every CD I own installed to an SD card, over 7500 songs, and it only takes 18.5 GB using Windows Media format. Even better, when you pop in an SD card the player takes only a few seconds to scan it and update its internal database. So even if you have 50,000 songs you could just copy them all to a couple of different SD cards and switch them in and out. There are only a small handful of players on the market with this feature and it gives you AMAZING flexibility in using your player. Want to just cram a ton of music on there? Go for it. Want to use a lossless, high quality format like FLAC so your music sounds perfect but don't want to be stuck with only a handful of songs on your player? No problem, grab a few cards and take as much as you like.

When you first get a blank card install it in the player and go to "system settings". Chose "format" and select "external card". The player will format your card for you and install a folder titled "MUSIC" on it. Just drag and drop any music folders you have saved on your computer here and install it in your player. The player reads the card, organizes the files, and you're ready to listen to music.

File Options. It accepts an amazingly wide range of file formats. MP3, WMA, Flac, even the various iTunes formats.

Built in FM radio. Less important these days but still a nice option to have sometimes. And it even does autoscan for stations.

SANSA Updater. If you go to the Sandisk website to the clip zip page you can download their installer. First, it upgrades the firmware on the player. DO THAT. But more important it also installs a small updater program. When you connect your player it pops open and gives you different options including syncing with different folders or just dragging music onto your player. You can use it to create playlists right on the player. Or, if you already have playlists on your windows media player you can sync with those instead.

CONs: Nothing is perfect and this is no exception. First, it is a very light plastic player. If you step on it or sit on it you WILL break it. Duh.

It seems to have a problems with songs recorded in iTunes format. Checking on line it has to do with the way iTunes tags certain songs. A few years ago iTunes adjusted the way they tag songs based on if they were DRM protected. I had a mix of old and new songs in my iTunes folder and if I tried to install them the player would hang up. Deleting the music from the player solved the problem. There is no such problem with ANY windows based format. Personally, I have seen this as yet another problem with Apple being not quite compatible with everything else and not a player problem.

Slow file transfer. Dragging music onto your player is kinda slow. Not a huge deal since you are unlikely to do it very often. It's even less of a big deal because you can take the SD card out and copy music directly to the card, then just pop it back in. In truth, even burning directly to an SD card can take a while if you have a lot of music. I copied 12 GB at once at it took almost an hour. But again, how often are you going to need to do that?

CONCLUSION: The bottom line here is this is an amazingly good MP3 player. Is it perfect? No, obviously not. But there are a lot of players on the market with fewer options for a lot more money. I spent several days researching every player on the market and the Clip Zip has the best combination of options at the best price, hands down.

Sony DCRPC110 Digital HandyCam Camcorder with Builtin Digital Still Mode

I recently decided to get this camera and sell off my TRV900 because I really found I needed something smaller to carry around. It was a tough choice, as the image quality and stills from the TRV900 were decidedly better. But I just couldn't pass up the size. This one is so small for the features you get. It has many, many well thought out features. For instance, it has a little swing-down handle to make filming easier (always an issue with these little digicams). You can hook the camera directly to your computer through USB, no need to get a card reader. Pop-up flash is nice for doing indoor shots. Easy to use menus. Fairly high resolution stills for a digital camcorder. I love the Sony batteries that tell you how much time you have left...same for the tapes and memory cards. Plenty of features that a camera at this level should have.

Now, for the negatives. No progressive scan. Let me say that again. NO PROGRESSIVE SCAN!! Heaven knows why Sony continues to leave this feature off. It was so noticeable between this camera and the TRV900 which does have progressive scan, when you capture stills off of video. The ones from this camera are nowhere near as good. Not even close. If the subject is moving at all (which is usually the whole point of trying to capture a still from video), without progressive scan it is just not as clear, sharp, colorful, etc. Why Sony does not put progressive scan on their cameras is beyond me. Most of the other gripes I have with this camera are fairly minimal. Some of the buttons are fairly hard to locate, the zoom is hard to use and rather touchy, the photo button is right next to it so I often hit the wrong one, etc. Fairly typical problems for a camera of this size. Were it not for progressive scan being missing though, this would definitely be a 5-star camcorder. Without it, sorry Sony. You blew it again.

If you are considering buying the Sony DC-PC110 Camcorder, you should ask yourself, "What am I looking for in a camcorder?". I spent a long time debating between buying this camera, the Sony PC9, and the Canon Elura 2 (all great camcorders). My final conclusion is that the PC110 is the best all around... but if you don't need to extras, you needn't spend all the extra money. The PC110 functions perfectly as a camcorder for movies AND as a quality digital camera, something that other camcorders can't boast. It also includes in-camera editing and special effects controls, image-stabilization (hands naturally shake, and this makes movies more smooth), night-shot (for recording in total darkness), and intuitive ergonomics (contrary to what other reviewers have said, the pinky doesn't belong on the controls, the index finger does...), and the camera is very easy to operate (once you get the hang of it). The 120X Zoom is very good (even at extreme closeness, the quality of the image does not suffer). Hooking it up to your computer for editing is easy (cables & free software are included).

As a digital camera, it's perfect. You can take pictures ("stills") while recording by pressing the "photo" button while in recording ("camera") mode, or you can take a series of pictures & delete the ones you don't want in digital memory ("memory") mode. You can play back your movies on your camorder (or hooked up to your TV) while in "VCR" mode. The camera charges quickly while off & plugged into an AC adapter, but the battery that it comes with only lasts around an hour, so you'd probably want to buy a bigger one for vacations.

The bottom line is, if you don't want to use your camera as an all-purpose two-in-one, you needn't spend the extra money (if you buy the camera as-is, you will need to buy an extra battery, a filter, a bag, digital tapes to record movies, and a 64MB memory stick for digital photos, which adds up to quite a lot of money). However, I recommend this camera as a long-term investment for all your camera needs... it is sturdy, takes quality movies, is easy to use, easily hooks up to PCs & Macs to edit (or to TVs to view), and doubles as a great digital camera. It also helps that it's very small and light (and looks very sleek...) If you don't want to use it as a digital camera, I'd recommend the Sony PC9 instead, which is basically the same as the PC110, but a bit smaller & takes lower quality digital pictures. Overall, I highly recommend the PC-110 -it's the best personal camcorder on the market.

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The PC110 appears to be a slight re-working of the PC100 with the aim of making it a better still camera and integrating it more closely with Sony's other video imaging products. It takes true megapixel stills, and also will store very short MPEG videos on its memory stick card. Viewing these requires a PC.

Unfortunately, the way this is implemented makes this device more like two cameras than one. You are either in "Memory" mode or "Camera" mode when recording, "Memory" mode or "VCR" mode when playing back. Stills and MPEG are transferred through the USB port, DV video through the FireWire. It all makes sense, when you realize that this camera does not consider MPEG to be a tape format. But it does take some time to get used to. And after you get used to it, you can move on to tricky little things like transferring small portions of your DV video onto the memory stick as MPEG etc. I think you can even transfer stills from memory stick to tape if you'd ever want to do that.

The message here is: this is the camera for people who want to do something with their images other than just watch them as is. It has a lot of features for in-camera editing and effects, though as has been pointed out in the editorial review, you can do this more easily on a PC than in the camera.

Finally, ignore the comments about the ergonomics. The author was holding the camera the wrong way. Your pinky should be nowhere near the focus or still photo controls. A closer reading of the manual and some experimentation would have put him straight.

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I bought this digital video camera just two weeks before the birth of my first child in Korea. It has been great for recording video to send via E-mail to my parents and friends in Canada. It is really slick and easy to use. (Also note that my manual is in Korean (as I bought the DVC in Korea) and I just played around with it to figure it out...of course I know I am still missing some uses of the camera, but I think those are for the more professional videographer anyways.) I have used the photos to also make a homepage of my child's pictures for easing viewing by people that are thousands of miles away. I would like to include the URL, but am not allowed in this review. You really need to see the results! Some of my friends are also now considering buying this camera. I am so happy I bought this...I know it is a little pricey, but except that I think it is really worth it. I would recommend buying a larger memory stick though...the 4k one it comes with isn't enough for a lot of use. I found myself frequently downloading the files to my computer (which is so easy to do by the way). I am looking at getting at least a 64k memory stick. The only downside to this camera was the high price, but I feel I will get enough use out of it to be worth it.

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When I first started looking at camcorders, one that kept repeatedly showing up was the Sony DCR-PC110. I started to research it more, and found out all the great features that they crammed in it. Then I saw the pricetag. As a 16 year old, I had no idea how I would pay for this, but I did find a way. Yes, it's a very expensive gaget, but it's been worth every penny I spent. I use it almost daily, if not taking pictures with it, then I'll film something and plug it into my computer and edit it. I would not recommend this camcorder to anyone who doesn't want to edit their video with a computer, beause I think it defeats the purpose of all the nifty options it has. When you first pick it up, if might feel funny if your hand because first of all it's so small, and second of all, theres a certain way to hold it that's different than most camcorders. This camera comes with everything you could possibly need. The only thing extra I would buy is a larger memory stick. Even if you're not planning to use this to take pictures, you will end up taking tons of digital stills. This is such I wonderful camcorder, I could go on forever. Both Newsweek and Consumer Reports magazine featured this camera as one of the best. If you want a great quality camcorder and willing to pay a high price, this is the camera for you!

Sony MZ-B100 MiniDisc Business Recorder

I had recently purchased a Mini disc recorder from the guitar center. It's advertised as a songwriters dream. In a box you get the md recorder, mic, headphones etc. I thought to my self,all these damn cords all the time! with todays technology and demand why hasn't anybody developed a md recorder with built in stereo microphones (along with an optional mic jack), built in speaker (along with an optonal headphone jack)And a variable pitch control (very important). Well, I did some deep research and found that the only way to find such a product was to take a look at sony's line of md recorders and see if there on the ball. Sure enough to my amazement I found the Mz B-100 a buisiness recorder with all the features I'd desired plus more. Except, it's advertised only as a journalists tool. This little bad boy is a songwriters dream for It's quick inspiration and exceptional surround sound quality (if you want). Mono or stereo and two more mega bass boost settings are available. It has a high/low mic sensitivity button. The stereo mics are labeled left and right on each side of the recorder and are by no means a toy, they sound fantastic and I haven't even tried it with an external stereo mic yet,I could only imagine. And the speaker works well enough to monitor your meanderings in quieter setting(not in crowds). You can also monitor while your recording to get the best mic placement with the supplied earphones that are great. Or even better yet, try monitoring at home with a set of professional studio headphones...incredible! It also has an input for an optical cable if you desire to hook it up to a cd player or multitrack recorder. And it has a power supply jack, contrary to the advertised specs. Also You can label each track or pass. And The recording time and battery life are great. It's just an awesome little heavyweight! (can you tell I'm impressed?) Now a few little NEGS and believe me there just a few little ones. The carrying case is rather useless. The only thing it might do is protect the finish, that's it! Besides that, I've seen better carrying pouches that come with more inexpensive ones, I think in considering it's application, a padded case would have been more deserving... besides, I always accidentally hit record when I grab the carrying pouch (not good). And Considering the price of the machine, A display screen that lights up is invaluable to the journalist. Definetely an overseen feature available on lesser md recorders. Another problem is a few of the buttons are rather tiny. I have a very small hand and even I find it difficult to press some of the buttons such as erase, edit/memo, display, etc. Apart from that, It's a powerhouse of a tool. Still amazed that Sony isn't pitching it to the music retailers.

I'm a professional broadcaster, having used MD since the early 1990's, and our organization uses these for newsgathering. The main flaws of the MZ-B100 as noted elsewhere are lack of lighted LCD, and extremely slow RR/FF and other actions, due to the single AA power supply and other issues. But another drawback is that, after extensive use, and with some units this develops earlier, it starts adding phantom tracks without pressing the track button. This is bothersome when you're trying to keep a record of what is where. I hope SONY comes out with an upgrade, but doubt they will, because they already have the slightly cheaper MZ-B10 and other digital recorder options.

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Every positive comment I've read about this machine is true. I liked mine so much I ended up buying three (when they were available.) I use one in my studio, take one with me to classes to record lectures (I'm 62 and have gone back to university.) I gave the third to a dear friend who is a fellow retired broadcaster living in Amsterdam who does a show on the internet DFM network Sunday afternoons and frequently includes stuff she has recorded into her mix. (Thunderstorms are great with mega bass turned on.) What nobody seems to mention is that there is a port on the top of the machine for one of Sony's transformer power supplies, which saves a lot on batteries. The transformers are good with 115-220 V at 60 & 50 Hz respectively, which means you can take the MZ-B100 just about anywhere in Europe or North America and not waste batteries except on remote locations. Sony's transformer has fold-in U.S. flat blade connectors to mains, but Magellan or AAA can fix you up with a converter plug for a nominal charge. Electronic editing is a cinch as you define edit points using the "mark" button. that assigns the track a number, which can then be moved to almost any other place also so marked. The first time I saw one of these machines was a photograph of Terry Anderson's workspace in Iraq on assignment from the BBC. I am told that when these MZ-B100's were released they cost in excess of $900. They are a bargain at more than that IF YOU CAN FIND ONE. I have Uher and Studer equipment that can't come close to quality per ounce that the MZ-B100 can deliver. The blank discs can be used "one million times" says Sony, without any noticeble loss of quality. I am a 40 year broadcast veteran, both "talent" and engineer, and if you told someone you could pack all of these features (read the manual, there's a link elsewhere in this product listing) in 1965 I'd have laughed at you while seriously questioning your sanity. If you can find one listed here or elsewhere BUY IT ! IPOD SCHMIPOD, this is the genuine breakthrough. There is also an optical digital input, which means you can virtually clone CD's if your CD machine has an optical output.(It's usually locatable by the little squareish plug in the back which protects the port when not in use.) I found the connecting digital cable and transformer on eBay. Good as the built in stereo mikes are, an expensive mike with a fabricated stereo mini plug to XLR connector does a fantastic job. The mic input also feeds phantom power to condenser mikes. All in all a little miracle of design and practicality.

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This recorder has been the best investment I have made. It is user friendly, has easy to read and understand displays, and makes great recordings using an external mic or its own internal mic. I have recommended it to several of my friends and our university radio station owns several. Students prefer this model over those recorders like the MZ N10 that are both difficult and confusing to use.

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I have had this recorder for ten years and I cannot believe it is still working. I use it between five and seven days a week, recording interviews for my job. For the first seven years, I used the recordings for broadcast (radio and TV.) Since then, I have upgraded to a Marantz PMD660, but I use this minidisc recorder for my every day stuff. After hundreds of hours of recording and playback, it is still kicking. It has even been dropped a couple of times. My only regret, is that I did not buy three of these at the time. When this baby finally wears out, I will be sad sad sad.

Royal Machines EZVue 8V Electronic Organizer PDA with 3MB Memory and 6-Line RoyalGlo Backlit Display

The product is very cheaply made. I have an ezvue6 that has last me 3 years and it's made more solid this this thing. There's no touch screen, you have to press the arrow buttons HARD and they won't take you back to another selection. you have to turn it off then turn it back on and start over. Royal has really gone downhill on this thing. This is NOT worth $30. try $10 at toys-r-us and label it "5 years and under".

The EZVUE8V is the most miserable piece of junk I have ever used. Every day it starts with "battery low" and requires two more. It will not schronize with my computer or any other. Instructions are useless and I will most certainly return it. I have been using hand held organizers for almost 20 years but not any that will work with the computer. This one doesn't work either Royal EZVUE8V Personal Digital Assistant

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I bought this product locally from Wal-Mart and it didn't last three months. "Pieces" of the display disappear making your entries unreadable. I have written to Royal Corp. and they have not even had the decency to respond. If I had the sales receipt at this time, I'd return it to the store and demand my money back for this piece of ****. Don't buy this item, you are wasting your money and time.

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I AVOIDED BUYING THISUNIT FOR SOME TIME AND BLEW A LOT OF $15 UNITS UNTIL I CAME BACK TO IT.

I LIKE ROYAL AND LOVE LOVE THIS ORGANIZER!!!! IT'S LIKE A PDA OR MORE, A SMART PHONE WITHOUT

PAYING THE PRICE.

READ THE MANUAL AND CONFIGURE THE UNIT STEP-BY-STEP.

DON'T FORGET THAT A LOT OF THE BUTTONS MENTIONED ARE ON THE KEYPAD.

IT IS VERY EASY TO LEARN HAS TONS AND TONS OF PROGRAMS--AND IT HAS SOFTWARE

THAT WILL WORK WITH WINDOWS. THE SOFTWARE IS TERRIFIC FOR NIGHT TIME LARGE INFORMATIONS.

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The EZVue 8V was a substitue for an old Rolodex electronic address book that was starting to go. After looking at different products I chose the EZVue. It seemed to have more stuff than I needed, and it worked pretty well. I did not like the fact that it went through my rechargeable AAA batteries like nothing. I had left it sitting for about 2 weeks, deciding whether I wanted to keep it and when I turned it on the batteries were dead. It also used the batteries when I was loading the information onto the unit. I ended up returning this baby. My old Rolodex had watch batteries that lasted years. I would have kept it if the batteries lasted longer.

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ARKON CMP227 Motorcycle and Bicycle Handle Bar Mount for Cameras with 1/4 20 Screw Thread

Pros:

-Pretty sturdy little device.

-Light

-Rubber platform under the 1/4" thread

-Fits my RODE Micro Boompole to connect my H4n (or H1) to the pole

Cons:

-Sometimes the head will spin while you tighten it somehow you have to hold the top of it while it tightens. A little hinky.

-Rotating head could be lower in my opinion (see reason for use above)

-1/4" thread is too long (See Other Thoughts)

Other Thoughts:

1/4" thread is too long to connect my H4n on to it. I needed to grind it down about 1/8" to make it fit. Not realizing how hot the metal thread was getting on the bench grinder, it suddenly popped out of the plastic head. I tried fixing it by re-drilling a hole through the head, but to no avail. Time to buy a new one (or one with a shorter thread).

Bottom line: This clamp is pretty sturdy; I would recommend it. However, if you need to mount an Zoom H4n or H1 (or even a digital camera), you may want to consider grinding it down (carefully!) or find another that has the right height of thread. Learn from my mistakes.

On a moving object (bike, car, etc) the camera does vibrate and can flop out of position if you hit a big bump. I found that it is better to work with gravity than fight it. Mount the camera hanging down or under your handle bar instead of on top. In some cases that could result in your video playback being upside down, but that's easily fixed too. Just import the video into Microsoft's free Movie Maker software, and under "edit movie" there is a list of options: pick "video effects", and then pick "rotate 180", and then use "save to my computer" under "finish movie" and ta-da, you just created a copy of the video file turned 180 upside down, or in this case return it to right-side up. It takes all of 7 seconds.

I am no video expert, but it was easy to download Microsoft's free version of MovieMaker and just flip the video around. I am sure other video editing software has rotate options too.

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Vibrates way too much to have clear video while riding, which is the purpose of the device, right? I used it to make portions of this short music video, to check it out search "chaotic commute" on YT. Amazon doesn't allow me to post a direct link.

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I read roughly 40-50 reviews on Amazon before purchasing this product. I read the Arkon product description, hoping to find weight limits that the mount would support, but found nothing discrete.

The CMP227 product listing does note that the mounting screw fits GoPro and Contour cameras. I have a Contour GPS, so I figured that this mount would be solid enough for my camera. The mounting instructions that arrived with the product show an outline of a camera that has nearly identical dimensions to the Contour camera line.

I took a test run across paved suburban roadways in a well-funded municipality. The mount allowed the camera angle to sink a bit over the course of ~10 miles, but it was not a major problem to readjust.

Upon viewing the video back home, I experienced more vibration that previous reviews had me anticipating. To remedy this, I opted to use my Contour GPS's "Continuous Photos" feature instead of capturing video on my next ride.

I rode for roughly 20 miles through a mixed-use paved path before my mount stem unexpectedly snapped on a smooth area of the path while I was maintaining consistent speed, elevation, and direction. My camera took damage across the lens and battery/memory card door when it fell to the side of the path. I had followed the mounting instructions that I received with the product and had not allowed extreme environmental conditions to affect the mount.

Arkon requires $9 to replace my mount using the 90 day "In Warranty Procedure". I spent $13.06 on my Arkon mount when I purchased it on March 26, 2013, making this warranty replacement cost 69% of the original cost. I see that it is currently selling for $7.62, which makes the warranty process seem incongruous for current potential customers.

I have used other types of mounts with my Contour GPS (car dash, fixed surface, headband, clamp) and none have faulted. I've had my Contour GPS since December 2011, and it received its first scratches using the Arkon mount today (April 3, 2013).

Summary:

I used my Arkon mount twice for a total period of 3 hours, and it snapped causing my camera to receive damage that hinders its ability to operate correctly. The warranty process is not agreeable for a customer with my experience. I would not recommend using this product.

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Quite pleased with both performance and price. I used this with a Canon SD780 in HD video mode on my mountain bike over rough terrain. Very small camera and the mount held it well. Resulting video is much better and more stable than dedicated "sport" cameras I've tried in the past.

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