Samsung Q2 Flash Memory 16 GB Portable Media Player (White)

• Video, Music, and Photo Playback
• 2.4-inch TFT LCD
• FM Radio and recorder/voice recording/text viewer
• Smart Media Search — DNSe 3.1
• 51 hours audio and 7 hours video playback

The Samsung Q2 is a solid MP3 player. It features great audio quality, support for many audio formats (aside from Apple's own, anyway), as well as ease of use. Unlike others, I have had no problems transferring music or playlists to this player. My computer is running Windows 7 64-bit professional and I use MediaMonkey to build playlists and to transfer audio.

The best feature has to be the long battery life. About 50 hours of playback is what is touted and my experiences with it seem to back this up. Sure, you can use a modern phone to listen to your music, but you won't get this kind of battery run time. Perfect for trips, bike rides, or catching up on podcasts while working.

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Wow..well one out of two ain't bad. I love this MP3 player. Took it to the gym today..Great sound and everything else. The only thing is that I cannot seem to find a good arm band that will fit this thing. I did get the GeeBee Ultimo sports arm band...That did not fit this player. Great MP3 player...Jodiepx

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Purchased this unit after doing a lot of research. The first thing

that should have made me suspicious was the fact that the Samsung

software Emodio did not automatically prompt me for a download nor

was it any where to be seen. I ended up downloading the software

manually myself from the Samsung website. It did not work.

Was able to download the songs to the player using Media Player 12 but was not

able to use the playlist function. After several calls to

Samsung, they tell me that this unit does not work with Windows 7 or

and Media Player 12 that there are some bugs and they have not

worked them out yet. Windows has been out since late last year,

I don't know what is taking them so long. Needless to say, I returned the unit.

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Got one of these players as a gift. The player is great and has lots of features that other popular players don't. Great battery life, radio, recording. I would prefer this to my ipod, except for two complaints.

First, You cant charge and play at the same time using the included USB cable. I haven't tried any other chargers.

Second, Emodio software (required to load music and video) is very unstable on the 4 computers I have tried. When I try to convert video to Samsung's .SVI format the software crashes.

Over all I would avoid this player. You can't even purchase videos to play on a Q2. This product is such a disappointment. I really hate to say it but it is worth the extra money to get an iPod Nano. Samsung is not an ipod killer, for me it is a reason to junk this and buy a new ipod. (said with much pain)

Aposonic A-VM1080 Vehicle Dashboard Camera Recorder Full HD 1080P Sony 5MP CMOS/Built-in Microphone

I have two dash cams. One for filming the front view and the other pointing back. I have been hit in the back about every other year in seems. So now I will have film for any wreck I might be in.

GS2000 FULL HD Car DVR 1080P 1.5" LCD Display 5MP Car DVR Camera Recorder Extend to 32GB TF Card

• Watch video while make video recording in driving. Support on-spot play back
• 1920x1080P FULL HD high quality resolution
• Advanced H.264 video compression technology
• Support HDMI high quality video transmission
• 5 resolution forms can be changed for video recording.

I bought this to record my driving just in the case I get ticketed for an offense I did not commit. Very easy to setup, and the suction cup sticks very strongly to the windshield. It comes off also with very little effort.

I used this for 2 weeks and the video was very good. You can mute the sound if not, it will record everything you talk in the car so be careful what you say with this one recording :)

I returned this product after 2-3 weeks for 1 reason: I park my car outside, and do not want to take a chance of some burglar breaking my windshield to steal this I had to remove it every night before I go to bed, but it is too hard to remember every night. Hence I returned it.

If you are someone that parks the car inside the garage, or does not worry about someone stealing electronics from your car, I strongly advise buying this.

** There is no GPS nor speed sensor in this. Just records the video **

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quality is really good. i done my search before buying it, and its worth it. Menu is very easy, easy to set up and use. Good quality even in the night.

LTS LTCIP830MV-W Wireless+RJ45 640x480 IP Camera with 30 IR LEDs and MicroSD Card Recording, White

Update:

I attached a video recorded from the Active X viewer from Internet Explorer. I was at work when I connected and was surprised to see my older son in my younger son's crib! You should get an idea of the audio and video quality. The camera was in wireless mode. It created a .asf file, but I changed the extension to .wmv to upload to Amazon.

This is from a perspective of a Mac user with Snow Leopard 10.6.4. I uploaded a bunch of screenshots of the setup screens.

PC users can extrapolate the logic.

The hardware is EXACTLY the same as the Sharx Security VIPcella-IR S. It is also the same as the y-cam-knight Google it.

I decided to save 50% of the cost of the Sharx Security VIPcella-IR S since I am very comfortable with computers and networks. By reading the excellent review of the Sharx, they are mostly from the added software and support. Once you figure this camera out, it will perform exactly the same as the Sharx Security VIPcella-IR S. (I haven't tried the mini-sd card yet)

At first, I thought, I'll just use the Y-cam Mac setup software, but it didn't find the camera.

The VERY first thing I did was to plug an Ethernet cord to the back of the Camera so that it can get an IP address from my Airport Extreme Router.

Then you have to determine what IP was given to the Camera so you can connect to it via the browser. Just follow the steps in the screenshot.

Once you have the IP address, simply type it in Safari and the default username and password is admin / admin.

From there you can mess with the settings.

Be sure to download the FREE y-cam app from iTunes so you can use your iTouch or iPhone as a super clear baby monitor!

The unfortunate thing is that there is no sound.

TO ACCESS OUTSIDE YOUR HOME

If you want to access the camera outside of your home, it is best to give it a DHCP Reservation:

In the AirPort Utility, click DHCP

Then under DHCP Reservations, click the + sign

Give it a Description and select the MAC Address (I copied and pasted it from the "System" Screen of the Camera settings

Then give it a valid IP address.

So whenever you restart your Airport, it doesn't give the Camera a different IP address.

Then you have to Configure Port Mappings.

I changed the port of the camera to 8081 just in case someone randomly gets my home IP address. The default is port 80, which any browser will automatically connect.

Just change all the ports in the Port Mapping Setup Assistant in the Airport Utility to match the port you picked, and the Private IP address will be the IP of the camera you chose above.

If you are geeky enough to understand the above, then you can save yourself about $150 bucks from the Sharx since they apparently do a great job of simplifying it for the end user. The LTS is the SAME hardware, but it isn't as "Plug and Play" Software and support make the Sharx a winner. I didn't have to call LTS support so I have no clue how they are.

All the other reviews to the Sharx in regards to performance will be relevant to this camera.

I'm thinking of buying another LTS LTCIP830MV-W Wireless IP Camera with 30 IR LEDs and MicroSD Card with the money I saved :-)

Hope this helped!

I'm as frugal as the next guy. After reading the various reviews here and other review websites, I was under the impression that this camera was the same as the Sharx Security VIPcella-IR S and the Y-Cam Knight. Since they look exactly the same, I bought the cheapest one (the LTS version) and was under the impression that I could just leverage the support, community forums and firmware updates from Y-Cam for my camera.

WRONG!!!!

There are differences between the cameras.

This camera ships with firmware 3.25, which is 2 years old and cannot be updated.

Missing full mac compatibility, SD functions and send to FTP, NAS-Ready and much more.

It will never stream audio via the Y-cam free iPhone app. (currently under development)

No support

Older chipset

My advice for others considering this camera: Pay a little more for the Y-Cam version. Unfortunately, you can't buy it through Amazon, so take a look at the US online retailers listed on the Y-Cam website. I am returning the LTS.

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In Internet Explorer, audio/video work perfect. Audio didn't work with the firmware shipped, you can get a new firmware here , then audio works just like advertised (not really, see update below). It automatically switches between night/day vision. Very good video quality also. Haven't tried mobile streaming yet but cam->IE works with zero issues. Make sure you update firmware like I said. To whoever discovered this product, Mr. Cruz thank you!!

This product is definitely for those who are more technical (no customer support) but honestly, it wasn't that difficult to setup at all.

__

Update DEC-03-10: Still having audio trouble. 3 different computers, a mix of XP/Vista, IE7/8. Upon first login, no audio. Go into settings, change nothing, simply click "Apply", the video refreshes, with audio. It's a minor issue but still, I took 1 star away for this.

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I just wanted to add a few more words to this product which might not have been covered. This product does have a firmware update site.

The new models come with the 4.+ firmware already installed.

I recommend this one for anyone that's somewhat tech savvy and would like to save a 100+ bucks on what is technically the same camera inside and out, with different software. If you'd like to save extra $$, the white one is 20 bucks less than the black one. I'm using this camera as a baby monitor.

I personally haven't tried the other models of the same camera, but I found installing the product pretty self explanatory. I recommend you read E.Cruz's review and installation instructions.

I use a Mac, so firefox, chrome, or safari didn't have sound. I've heard that installing VLC Streamer with Safari will allow sound, but I haven't tried it myself. For PCs, it seems that Internet Explorer is the only browser that works with sound, (after installing ActiveX.

Here's what has worked for me (sound wise):

Y-Cam app: for the iPhone (free to download). You will get a good picture, but as some have said, the sound is choppy. Seems that sound only works on admin (for me at least.

Baby Monitor HD: for the iPhone (cost 9.99). You will get a good picture, and the sound is pretty seamless (no choppiness). It has some extra features, like audio and vibrate alert. My personal choice.)

One tip on the audio: Cameras must be configured with Audio set to AMR 5.9. ie. Setting> Camera>Camera Settings>AMR Bit Rate.

I know this isn't much of a review, rather than buyer and technical advice, so I'll say that the picture quality is good, even though it does have a pink hue to it during the day. The night vision is excellent (black and white).

I still think the product is excellent, and I got more than I expected. I have three apple devices (two iPhones and one iPod touch) which I can use as a monitoring alarm and it sure beats the ridiculous prices I've seen on novice baby monitoring products.

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I am always amazed at how someone can discredit a decent product based on their lack of technical background. Case in point was the previous review where it is evident they had little background in public vs. private IP addressing. This reviewer can only view camera via private IP addressing (I'm assuming using DHCP) via wired Ethernet connection. (Admittedly I have no knowledge whatsoever of Mac's and many write of issue concerning such.) But reading the reviews carefully, I note where many issue fall on router and IP addressing. You can't always rely on UPnP configuration for your router.

In my opinion, this camera is not for the novice but definitely is good buy for those with "journeyman" level home or office IP networking experience.

As a previous reviewer noted earlier before attempting configuration of this camera to your network upgrade your router's firmware or simply upgrade router altogether as I did. Cisco E1000 router works great. Also using DYNDNS free dynamic domain naming service is the way to go vs. public IP address. Works great on Microsoft XP and Windows 7.

FP (ComTIA A+, Network+)

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Vivicam DVR410 Grape 1.8IN Swivel Screen 4XAAA

Bought this for my daughter for a santa gift-received and wrapped-she open xmas morning and the screen is all scrambled-cannot return because I needed to return within 14 days-thanks for ruining my daughters xmas morning-now I need to but her another--Never buy from you again!!!!

this unit wasnot the same quality,doesnt focus well, on off button is quirky and video feture says (sd card too slow) and doesn't work.new and improved no doubt

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It was just as I expected. Just a little camera that didn't cost much that I can practice with. Great value!!

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Don't waste the money. Functions horrible, takes horrible video, worse than some of the toys on the market. wish the package hadn't been cut open

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Panasonic RR-QR80 Tapeless Digital Audio Recorder

Good recording quality for microphone. Good playback voice quality for speaker. Voice clearly legible in all modes (15, 30, 60). Easy to use. Small, easily fits in shirt or pants pocket. Has advanced features, but most users will be happy just using the basic features.

I received the digital recorder of a gift and its very good for discussions and also fun just to play around with. It has some very cool function and a fast and slow mode. It has a good amount of memory, but that's about the only bad thing. It fills up pretty fast if your recording something thats very long. It has great sound and is perfect size to fit in your back pocket. All in all its a great digital recorder for the price.

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First, if you're perusing these reviews because you're switching from a micro cassette recorder, you're in for a treat. While you can't take the tape out and hand it to someone, the advantages of digital are too numerous to mention here. My favorite is the ability to playback or erase individual notes without having to search the tape to find them.

Anyway, as for this unit: I was looking for something easy to use, [price], decent sound quality, small, and good reviews. While it does take awhile to decipher the instructions, the RR-QR80 is relatively easy to use, and I especially like the fact that the two major buttons are Record and Stop. Let's face it, these are the buttons you want to get to fast. You press and hold the Record button for about a second to pause, but I wish you could just click once to pause, then click again to resume. Playback is easy, but all the secondary buttons, including the Erase button, are quite small but have a solid feel. The Hold button feels secure and is easy to use. I've seen some small units where you need to use your fingernail to move the Hold button.

I got my unit refubished from Sunshinelect, so the price was right, and the unit was shipped the following business day. Excellent! However, you have to wonder why there are so many "refurbished" RR-QR80s out there. One can only hope there was some inherent problem with this unit that Panasonic fixed. So far so good.

Sound quality changes with record mode. HQ will only record for 15 minutes, but sound quality is outstanding. Standard mode will record for 30 minutes, and quality is more than adequate. LP mode will record 60 minutes, and is okay but not great. Let's face it, your not going to be recording live concerts with this thing. Also, the mic level is adjustable, and set to High will record voices from a distance accurately.

Size is where this unit really shines. It's the size of a business card/credit card and

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Qmate@ Spy Voice Activated Digital Audio Voice Recorder USB Flash Drive Long Battery Life 4GB HQ

Purchased this item to record potential buyers as they look at my house, which is for sale. I was surprised when I received the item, as it comes in a "USB Flash Drive!" package, with no mention of the recording capabilities. I thought maybe I accidently purchased the wrong thing, as I have occasionally made that mistake. Upon opening, I found the poorly written instructions regarding it's recording abilities, and was relieved. The device is pretty straight forward and easy to figure out, so the bad instructions aren't a show stopper. I was a little disappointed that the unit does not record while it's actually plugged into the computer, but again, not a deal breaker. The recording quality is pretty spectacular, and it does indeed record for quite a long time. This item IS NOT voice/sound activated as advertised, unless it requires absolute silence with absence of ambient sound (clocks ticking, fans blowing, etc.) I did have a situation where the unit did not correctly close the file, and led to a complete loss of recording, but after testing again, it seems to work. All in all, for the price, I would say this thing is definitely worth buying.

The unit records O.K., but it was presented as a "voice activated" unit. The instructions say, "To turn on: Please push button to Right. Turn off: Please push button to Left." The unit records continuously with long (30 + minutes) periods of silence. To listen to a 1 hour recording with 10-15 minutes of recordable sound, you would have to listen to the whole hour to determine if anything usable was recorded. NOT VOICE ACTIVATED as indicated! Very disappointed.

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Works great and as advertised. Sound quality is good and it is simple to use. I expected less and was surprised that it works that good. Just charged it and it recorded fine and played back. Stopped recording when there was no sound.

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I am a researcher that conducts interviews. I have had my expensive audio recorder fail in the midst of a critical interview. Using two recorders might intimidate some of my research partners. Voila! Qmate to the rescue.

I use it as a backup and its small size is less intimidating. It looks just like a flash drive on the interview table; except for the red light, no one would ever know that it was recording sound. It is easy to download the data immediately after the interview is completed. The sound quality is surprisingly good for such a small, inexpensive device. As a bonus, I can store the written transcripts on the same device because it is a flash drive, too.

The only downside has been the lack of being able to record in mp3 format. However, for the price and its role as a backup device, it has life saver.

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I purchased this device to help my wife, and figured it would be fun to have one too. I ordered this "cheap" one for myself and "Voice Activated Recorder Small Voice Recorder Flash Drive 4gb +" from GearPro 30hr Battery for my wife. Of course I figured that I would get what I payed for but that was an understatement, but it turned out this recorded no sound, was made out of cheap peal-able vinyl tape, the on/off button would get stuck somewhere in the middle with no clear endpoint. Audiofiles would record, but without any sound in them, just clicking noises like it attempted to record but just couldn't muster the energy. This product is clearly a cheap non-working knock-off of the offering mentioned above. Don't be fooled, you get what you pay for. Will attempt to return. If I cant I will have a 4Gb un-sexy flash drive of questionable reliability.

TASCAM TMST2 Condenser Microphone - Cardioid

• Includes 10' cable as well as an 18" cable for video cameras
• Great stereo imaging
• Includes microphone stand clip, wind screen, AA battery and protective carry pouch

service was great!The mic does not have a very strong signal so I have to turn it way up causing excess line noise and a poor quality recording.I expected better from Tascam inspite of the price range.Useable but limited.

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Panasonic HDC-SD9 AVCHD 3CCD Flash Memory High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabiliz

I just received my camera today. Of course, I've been researching this little gem since it was first announced for production by Panasonic a few months ago. Along with that research, I've been playing with it now for several hours and I wanted to run by some first impressions:

Pros:

* Lightweight! Panasonic touts this as the smallest, lightest HD camera available for HD recording (as of 1/2008). That's certainly no joke. You're expecting this to weigh like a brick given it relatively compact size, but it's extremely light. I'm not expecting any arm fatigue here!

* Exceptional image quality. HD recording at 17 MBPS (variable bit rate) is exceptional and image artifacting that occurred in previous generations (SD1 and SD5) are pratically eliminated. I typically burn to DVD, but I'm assuming that image quality should be good considering my eventual plan on burning to Blu-Ray through Sony Vegas Pro. The video compression uses AVCHD (Advanced Video Codec High Definition) which is based on the very efficient H.264 compression.

* Flash media storage. No more dropped frames/corrupted media on magnetic tapes! No limitations imposed by a fixed hard drive! No more wasted DVD media for footage that I want to edit anyway! More importantly for me, NO MORE MOTOR NOISE. Now I can film an art gallery in true silence. Also, with the only motor in the camera servicing the camera lens (which can't be heard at all), there will be considerably less wear and tear on the camera overall. The SDHC cards are pricey, but you can get an 8 GB SDHC Sandisk Extreme III card for about $ $ through independent sellers on Amazon, although I suspect the price for this media will be headed down. I bought 3 that way. An 8GB card will store about 1 hour of video footage at the maximum bitrate setting. Note: It is IMPORTANT to get at least a Class 4 card to record at the substantially quick bitrates. Personally, I just went ahead and got Class 6 cards (faster) since it wasn't that much more. Pony up the extra cash for the SDHC cards at the rate that I film, it will pay for itself after several usages. Try and make the same claim about using a tape more than 2 times without some noticeable degradation.

* Image advisor. Are you panning too quickly? Subject too dark? Too much backlight? Are you not holding the camera still (pops up if you have the image stabilizer off)? The advisor identifies these issues and brings a menu option up immediately to rectify the issue; all you have to do is simply accept the advice and you're good to go! I've exposed the camera to several unfriendly environments and the advisor was quick to chime in with problem identifications/solutions.

* OIS. The image stabilizer on this camera is exceptional...and I have NEVER said that about any stabilizer for cameras that I've owned in the past. Image stabilizers are typically exaggerated on most cameras (i.e., super steady-no-motion claims), but this one does a "wow" kind of job. At 4,000 times a second, the optical stabilizer does an impressive job at stabilizing an image even at the full 10x optical zoom. This is approximately 5 times faster than Panasonic's predecessor's. I've tried the system on and off and it's extraordinarily impressive. Don't expect the same results, however, on digitially enhanced zooming which I never use anyway.

* Pre-record. Ever catch yourself saying, "Man, I wished that I had hit record about a second sooner to catch my kid saying that!" Well, with pre-record enabled, the camera keeps the last 3 seconds of video buffered in standby mode so if you do hit record at the opportune time, you can "go back 3 seconds in time to capture what you might have missed!"

* Exceptional sound. Yep, the camera comes with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. I'm a bit of an audiophile, so I truly appreciate being immersed in a home movie environment that has sound around me as if I was still there filiming it. There are 3 options with the micorphone: surround, zoom mic, and focus mic. The regular surround options records all ambient noise equally, although you can actually change the gain, if you want. The zoom mic actually directs more input to the front microphone if you zoom in closer to an object further away; this allows you to "zoom" in on sound originating directly ahead. I haven't had a chance to fiddle with the focus mic, but I'm sure that it works just as well.

Cons:

* Battery life. According to the manual, the supplied battery can optimistcally handle 1 hour and 45 seconds of continuous record time (a full charge does register at 119 minutes). Realistically, the manual says, it would last about 1 hour, if you factor in zooming, switching it on but not recording for a few minutes between shots, lighting conditions (and compensation), etc.; Panasonic's predicted time is probably close. I would recommend getting the Panasonic VW-VBG260 battery from a 3rd party dealer which will last twice as long (got mine for $129.95 Panasonic charges $169.95). You could get the VBG6 battery which lasts a LOT LONGER, but it requires a separate pack to carry the power supply since the battery is so large. Not worth the hassle, in my opinion.

* No viewfinder. Minor inconvenience for me, but I prefer the old style viewfinder. However, the camera is so small and comfortable that using the LCD screen works fine. I'm willing to concede that this is a non-issue.

* No accessory shoes. You want to hook up a camera light? Forget it nowhere to put it unless you rig something to it (shoestring anyone?). Again, though, I'm fed up with trying to light a completely dark room and I find myself not really wanting it. That said, the low-light function on the camera as well as Magic Pix (full color in both modes, not the green washed out night vision with scary eyes!) does surprisingly well with 1 lux of light available.

Overall, the camera is extremely impressive for the price and the 3rd generation of HD cameras from Panasonic are a cost-effective way to enjoy high quality images. For standard DVD usage, this camera is more than perfect. However, as a caution, check that your video software is capable of using the AVCHD video format. It's still in its infancy, but an increasing number of software vendors are adopting it is a viable alternative. If you're serious about video editing, I would highly recommend Sony Vegas Pro Version 8.0 (current version as of 2/08) or later.

I got this camera as soon as it came out. I'm extremely happy with how small and light it is i can carry it around in a coat pocket and record easily. The pre-record function is very nice, especially if you don't want to be recording all the time.

Video editing was a little sluggish, but that's not hte camera's fault just takes a lot of muscle to edit HD video. I started out with the included software (Pinnacle 11 trial) with a Quad-core 2.4Ghz machine with 2GB of ram, 800mhz FSB, and the computer just about died. I upgrade the RAM to 3GB and it is still sluggish but works. So definately should make sure you have a FAST computer.

I would agree with other reviewers that having the HDMI port behind the battery is bad. Also, you ahve to have the camera on AC power to move video from the card to the computer. Otherwise, you can just unplug the SD card and plug it straight into the computer througha card reader seems to be alot faster that way anyhow.

Battery life seems pretty good, especially since you are using the LCD screen all the time. Which, by the way, even in bright sunlight is very visisble.

Overall, very happy with the camera, and looking forward to taking lots of videos of our upcoming newborn. But i will definately be looking to upgrade the software package to get better editing.

Buy Panasonic HDC-SD9 AVCHD 3CCD Flash Memory High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabiliz Now

This camera is great! I have had this camera for 3 months... The highlights include great HD video quality, very straight forward usage, very good and easy SD to DVD transfer software and tiny size. You can take the SD card out and pop it right into your PS3 for immediate HD playback. You can also use the software to create same quality HD-DVDs on DVD-R-DL discs that hold 1 hour each. Buy the 8GB SD card to match 1 hour of DVD-R-DL. I thought that the price was good at $800 for this camera and now I see that it's less than $600. Buy it you will want to send me a thank you note after you get it... (but it's really not me you should thank I thank panasonic for coming up with this winner).

PS. While some people here complain about the low light performance, I think that they should really read the manual... They probably tried the Low Light mode (which really isn't very good)... they just need to switch to manual mode and open up the iris a couple of notches (1 switch move + 4 clicks) , it's very quick and easy to do with this camera and then the low light videos will be good and the camera will also stop playing with the white balance as is commonly an issue with indoor video camcorder shooting).

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There are already several very good reviews here, so I'll only hit on a few points that should be emphasized:

1.) Very small and light; almost unbelievably so. This camera is already getting much more use than our older one simply because it fits easily into my wife's purse or a fanny pack.

2.) Quick startup. I haven't timed it, but the startup is so quick that many spontaneous events, which you'd usually miss, get recorded.

3.) Removable SD card. Very easy for transferring files to the PC for editing or backup. My wife and kids love the ability to shoot something, remove the SD card, plug it into the PlayStation 3, and watch it. DON'T pay for the built-in 16gb memory; it costs too much, but more importantly you lose considerable ease of use.

4.) Awful low-light performance. The camera works like a dream in bright light, but suks donkey b*lls in anything less; It does work, but the quality is barely acceptable. I really really hope that a company will some day realize there are consumers who are willing to pay a significant premium for high-quality low-light performance in consumer (small and easy to use) camera.

5.) Almost too light. The image stabilization is barely adequate offset how much this thing bounces around. I guess everything is a tradeoff (see point #1)

All-in-all a wonderful camera as long as it's used within its limits. The low average score really represents the poor state of AVCHD editing software and, to some extent, the camera's poor low-light performance; it seriously mis-states the quality and usefulness of this camera.

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I purchased this camera from a B&M store (sorry Amazon) and since I always use Amazon reviews in my evaluation of new products, I wanted to leave an update for those of you looking at this camera and are concerned about software. There are plenty of reviews out there on performance, size, etc....read those for that info. This is specific to software and importing.

Several reviewers have stated that the footage from this camera is not editable. Up until recently, this was true.

iMovie 08 does not yet support this camera's files. There are rumors swirling that Apple is close to releasing an update to take care of this. Given Steve Job's personal endorsement of AVCHD and Panasonic at recent Keynotes, I don't doubt this will be addressed. That said, folks have said that a product called VoltaicHD can be used to process the .mts files into .MOV files. This software costs $30 but a trial is available.

Another reviewer said that the included trial software, Pinnacle Studio Plus, does not handle the files either. As installed from the CD, this is true. However, go to the Pinnacle website and look for the latest update. After updating to 11.1.2 (you can do this while still using the trial, just bypass the product registration), Pinnacle is able to process, edit and export the .mts files. I have successfully exported to MPEG2, MPEG4 and DiVx from Studio Plus.

The reason for 4/5 stars it is only trial software and right now there is only the single software package out there that handles it. It should be expected that you will need *some* purchased editing software to edit enhanced codecs such as this but only having one to choose from is a little limited.

Other than the software/editing hiccups, this camera is destined to be a terrific addition to my family.

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Zenith DVD2381 Progressive-Scan DVD Player

• Single-disc DVD player
• Supports DVD, CD, CD-R/RW, and MP3 formats
• Parental controls
• Progressive scan, shuttle control
• Digital TV required for progressive scan feature; remote included

We were given an Apex 1500 as a gift,which died after one week of use. When we went shopping for a replacement we were loking for a unit with more than basic features. Image and sound quality were very important but reliability was paramount. CIrcuit City had quite a wide selection with very little price difference from one unit to another. We selected the Zenith DVD 2381. WOW what a great machine at a reasonable price! The unit has every bell and whistle you can imagine. First it is very attractive. Handsome understated face plate that stands apart from the endless look alike black boxes. But look...what is that button on the right?? It is a jog wheel similar to the controls on the back of a Digital camera. It allows you to control the unit from the machine and not require a remote for basic functions! HALELLUAH! We once had a vcr that had only mininal controls on the machine and demanded the remote to function, If you have ever lost, broken, or had the dog eat a remote you can guess what happened there, and we were stuck. This unit aleviates that possibility and I feft, that the designers are really looking out for the customers needs here. When we set the unit up at home we were not disappointed by the electronics either. Picture is razor sharp, sound is excellent also. The unit has a host of otputs for all the latest formats including progressive scan. The remote functions for your TV also and the button glows in the dark. Thejog forward and advance control is fun. The box says that the unit is software upgradable for future developements, but there is no mention of this in the manual or on Zenith's web site. We are very happy with the unit and would recommend it in a heartbeat!

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Especially for the price, this is a fine product. I have not had any mechanical problems with it, and the features are more than enough to keep me satisfied. I especially enjoy the zoom function and the ability to go forward or back frame by frame.

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Lesson learned. I purchased this player without having a DVD disc with me to test it. The main reason that I purchased it was the pirce and the progressive scan feature. I setup this player in no time and played a new movie The One and noticed that the image would pause for about five seconds. I own a Toshiba and it never did this, os I tested the player using The Martix and the player would skip over scenes or skip ahead five seconds in a scene. Someone would be talking and then it would skip to another scend five seconds ahead. I also could not get this player to play a mp3 file and I tried more than one type of disc and different formats and it would not play. I also ran a dirty disc test, by touching my nose and placing my oily finger prints over the disc and inserted in to the player and the player froze and would not open the tray or turn off. I had to disconect the power a few times and pressing the open button it finally open, a good player should play a disc with finger prints on it with no problems. I do like the features on this player, but what good are they if you can't watch a move wihtout it skipping or jumping ahead in scenes or pausing during playback. Zenith states that the player is software upgradeabel, but a visit to the website didn't list any info on this at all and the website didn't list a tech support number to help with this problem. I will return this player and try another.

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We purchased this DVD player last year from Circuit City. It freezes consistently about 10-15 times per movie on all but the newest DVD movie. Rental DVD viewing is so awful, that we can't even invite friends over to watch on our large screen tv due to the embarassment of this. We tried to return it but CC insisted on sending it out to have it repaired vs. giving our money back. The repair attempts were unsuccessful x2, with the technician finding no problems. We are now back to the drawing board and will have to purchase another player. It definitely won't be a Zenith!

My friend recommended this unit and so far it has been excellent. They also have it at Circuit City. I like the little color CD that spins around on the display.

Ematic 8 GB Video MP3 Player with 3-Inch Touchscreen, Built-in 5MP Digital Video Camera, FM Radio,

• 8 GB capacity for storage of up to 2,300 songs, 7,000 photos, or 20 hours of video; expandable to 16 GB via MicroSD card
• Up to 8 hours of music playback or 4 hours video playback on a single charge
• 3-inch color TFT LCD touchscreen display with 320 x 240 (QVGA) pixel resolution
• Supports MP3, WAV, WMA, OGG, FLAC, and APE audio files; AVI, MP4, RM, RMVB, and FLV video files; JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF, and TIFF images; TXT text files
• One-year limited warranty

got this for my daughter and it worked for 3 hours, sent it back and got a new one, this lasted for 2 weeks, this was never dropped or abused, they are junk don't buy

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I bought at the site, and request to deliver at my hotel in Orlando, considering that I am a turist and I will stay for few days in US. The item arrived in my last day, I out it in my bag, and traveled back to home. When I arrived at home to open the item, it never worked. The screen has a problem and did not show anything. The problem now is that i have to send back to Amazin and pay the amolst the same amount of the cost, just to ship. So I will keep my never work mp3 with me....

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I am in disagreement with the Ematyic E4 Series received , the Digital Video Recording and Digital 5MP Full-Sized they are out of service, he does not gain images, I only can see a green screen. I sent an email to Ematic and the answer that they gave me was not useful for me. I am very angry because I purchased a bad-quality product and I do not have suitable answer from Ematic. Can Amazon make anything to solve my problem?

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Ematic 8 GB Video MP3 Player with Touchscreen, 5MP Video/Still Camera, FM Radio, and Speaker (Black) the 8 GB Video MP3 twith 3-Inch Touchscreen,with Built-in 5MP Digital Video Camera,a FM Radio, and Speaker I got this before I got my table it work good for every thing but reading books. Now I us it with my old computer speaker to listen to music, camera is better then my table you have to add an sd card to make it work

I got mine from another website but never the less it still ended to be not worth it. I took good care of it and for some reason it wouldn't hold a charge anymore

HP KS523AA USB TV Tuner

This tuner has proven its value for me as a college student. The tuner allows you to connect a coaxial cable directly from the jack (supplied in most college dorms) to the tuner, allowing you to transform your laptop into a tv. Making this a good solution for not owning a tv. This was easy to install. Using the antenna (not cable) the tuner was able to recieve 9 local channels including abc, nbc, cbs, and fox. It is also useful for recording shows directly to the computers hard drive. I have also used it to connect my xbox 360 to the laptop(through s-video). Through quickplay the graphics weren't amazing, but lag was bearable (as long as the playback feature was disabled)...Definitely worth considering if you have access to cable, but no tv.

If you're using Vista as an OS, skip the rest and BUY this ONE!!! I have an HP laptop and this installed and integrated effortlessly. I struggled with another manufacturer's version of this device and absolutely could not get the driver installed. I returned that one and purchased this. I highly recommend this tuner!

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for win7/vista machines, using the ms "windows media center" makes operation with this TV tuner easy. don't be misled by the quick setup guide, which points to hp MediaSmart or hp quickPlay.

happy with operation with windows media center!

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I debated long and hard about this product due to a of a few negative reviews by computer novices at Amazon. My fears were unfounded.

I'm running Vista SP2 on an HP 1.8mHz dual core laptop bought for under $500, (2 GB memory). Using Vista's included Media Center I get crystal clear HD quality, a great FREE channel guide that shows programs 2 weeks ahead, and the ability to record over the air TV just like the cable companys DVR that I'm replacing.

The remote is solid and useful and works well. Set up was easy and quick out of the box. If you use the Windows Media Center Guide, you can add sub channels.

The included antenna was just a little weak for my area (12 miles from stations) so I purchased an indoor multi-directonal table top antenna for over the air recording for about $20. However, the great thing with HDTV is that once you get a channel through a better antenna, you get it in absolute clarity.

Buy it. You'll get more than your money's worth.

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I bought this a couple of months ago. I use it to watch live TV and record. All off the antenna. This is fabulous. It was really easy to setup..had it working in minutes. the antenna works great too better than the one I have for my HDTV (have not tried yet but i think i can plug this one in). I love having my laptop work as a DVR also.

Toshiba DR430 DVD Player/Recorder - 1 Disc(s) - Dolby Digital Virtual Surround DTS

The DVD recorder is easy to use. Picture quality of recording is excellent. I'm very pleased with the product. I would .

I love this product. Will recommend it to everyone. The dual recording mode makes it easy to record on DVD-R and DVD+R. Wish I had this product sooner.

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Did not know until receiving the unit that it needed an external tuner.

I could not find one anywhere that would work and no techs could suggest any.

I have kept the unit and am using it as a dvd player only.

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Nokia 6555 Unlocked GSM Flip Phone with 1.3MP Camera, Video MP3/Video Player, Bluetooth and microSD

While it is true that the Nokia 6555 has very short battery life, it is common to all 3G phones. However, there is a way to increase battery life: change connection type from UMTS to GSM from Auto. This will disable 3G and force the phone into GSM mode, which will greatly increase battery life.

Hope this works.

I bought this phone last week directly from the AT&T store. I renewed my existing contract with AT&T so I already had their service. I am very impressed with the phone overall. It is sleek and stylish with a lot of features which work well.

Pros: Styling and Features

Call quality and signal strength

Micro SD card slot

Dedicated USB cable port

Dedicated headphone jack (albeit a small one so you still need an adapter)

Pin type connector charger (not the clip on connectors)

Cons: Battery Life

Lack of installed ringtones, (correction, see below)

Hard to navigate folders and menus

I mostly use the phone to talk on and not much else. I need to charge the battery pretty much every night. I can go about a day and a half or 2 days if I stretch it. If you talk a lot or intend to use the other features plan on charging it every night. In their defense the battery life is rated at 3 hours of talk time and that is pretty much it. You won't get more than that and like I said you won't get even that much if you do games or other stuff. The other thing that was kind of disappointing was no ringtones installed except the standard ATT ring. (Correction). There are a couple of ringtones installed I just wasn't looking in the right folder which is the biggest problem I have with it now. The music hides in different menu folders and depending which menu you are in you won't see them which is why I didn't think there were any tones at first. You pretty much have to download anything you want to play.

I really like the phone and if the battery would last longer it would be about perfect. Since all I do is use it for talking and not much else it suits me.

I have had this phone for about 5 months now and still really like it. I am not a tech wiz so I have not even used the music player and other features until recently. I downloaded some ringtones from a 3rd party website and it was easy. They play great. Today I used the bluetooth capability to load pictures from my camera to my MacBook and also loaded a few songs onto my phone. It was easy for a novice like myself. No compatibility issues. Call quality and reception have been above average. I fly all over the east coast and it works pretty much everywhere you would expect.

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Just got this phone on Weds, as replacement for my old Nokia I was looking for a phone that is reliable, easy to use, has texting capabilities, sleek, has a streamlined design, a loud alarm (I rely on my phone to wake me up), and takes clear pictures. This phone is compact, and performed well when I saw it at the Cingular store.

BUT today, I experienced the worst battery life that a cell phone could have. After charging this phone to the max, I texted my friends, and talked for about 3 hours when the battery indicator showed that 1/4 of its capacity. Then, my phone died. Usually, I'd have at least 1 hour left to use the phone, with an indication of 1/4 battery. BUT NO! It just died, and luckily, I wasn't in a situation where I needed a phone (I was at home all day today). Everyday since I got this phone, I've had to charge it. Usually every 2 days I'd charge my old Nokia phone.

I will be calling Cingular to ask for a replacement battery.

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I replaced my Motorola L6 with this Nokia 6555. I liked the L6 except the keys were very small and close together, so I would sometimes hit the wrong key. Also, I had to lock the keys whenever I carried it so a key would not get pressed accidentally. What I needed was a flip phone with slightly larger keys and this Nokia was just the ticket.

This cell phone has so many features that I will only list a few. First off, my friend just got a Samsung Blackjack II and this Nokia does almost all the same things that his does. They both have MP3, 3G, Bluetooth, internet access, camera, Micro SD memory ready, organizer, and more with services through ATT. As far as we can tell thus far is the only thing the Smartphones have the Nokia 6555 does not have is Microsoft Mobile Suite. The Blackjack keys are so tiny that I do not know how anyone can use them. Plus, the Blackjack cost much more. The better choice is by far the Nokia 6555.

The only problem I am having is navigating the menus to find the settings I am looking for. I have to keep referring to the manual. I suppose after a while I will learn where everything is and memorize most of it.

The battery life seems to be about average for a fully loaded cell phone. Maybe some day they will make batteries that last much longer for those power users that complain about short battery talk time. For now we just have to charge the battery more often. Not a big deal for me. If I plan to use the phone a lot, then I simply charge my phone and headset at night to have a full charge on both and I am ready to go the next day. If I do not use it very much, then I only have to charge them about every 3 or 4 days.

Pros:

Slim and stylish.

Good sound quality.

Many features.

Cons:

Menus difficult to navigate.

UPDATE:

Another con is the backlight only stays on for 10 seconds and there is no way to adjust it to stay on longer.

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First, the bad. I purchased the Nokia 6555b from AT&T Jan 8, 2008. Three weeks later the exterior mini-display was cracked and inoperable. I had worn it on my belt while driving and my seat belt buckle put enough pressure on the mini-display to crack it. VERY disappointing. All Nokia had to do was put a thicker, more rigid plastic cover over the display and it would be fine. Instead, I have a busted phone. Except for the broken mini-display and the inability to see the clock or caller ID, the phone still works, but that mini-display is a Bad Design.

A lot of people complain about the battery. At first I experienced very short battery times as well. I even bought a second battery for $15 with some other accessories. I have never needed it. I believe the battery gets better with time. At first it was displaying low battery charge. Now it goes for a couple of days no problem. I charge it each night, though, just to be safe.

I bought the 6555 because it works with the Acura Hands Free Link system via Bluetooth. (Not all Bluetooth phones do.) It also works with the Ford Sync system. Both work very well. It is indeed nice to place or receive calls without having to find the phone. No clumsy earphones. No looking away to dial or press buttons. No wires at all. My wife leaves hers in her purse, I leave my in my pocket (not wearing it on my belt anymore--I might break it again.) With Sync, the Bluetooth even allows the phone to become a media player. Very cool.

Using the free downloadable Nokia software, you can edit the phonebook from your laptop via the special--and hard to find--micro USB cable that costs $15. But if your laptop has Bluetooth like mine--because I bought a Microsoft Bluetooth wireless laser mouse 8000 and its Bluetooth receiver also receives other Bluetooth devices like my phone--you can connect without having to buy the micro USB cable. The cable is handy to carry though, so you can connect the phone to other computers if necessary to download pictures and video if needed. Using this software, you can also make your own ring tones. My custom ringtone is Hillary Clinton cackling/laughing.

The main display has a nice large font that is visible in broad daylight. Color combinations (themes) are adjustable and some are better than others, but it's nice to have options.

The phone has a speaker phone built in if desired.

It's easy to switch from ring to vibrate--just hold the # key for a few seconds.

If you have MS Outlook as your emailer, you can sync your calendar.

The 6555 comes with a host of useful tools including: a Stopwatch with split times; a Countdown Timer to remember to take the roast out on time; a full-function Calculator; an Alarm Clock; Notes; To-Do list; and a Calendar.

It has some dumb games that are mostly demo only.

It has a very mediocre still camera and an even more mediocre video camera.

It can text, but I don't do that.

It can be configured for Push-To-Talk, at extra cost, if you must have walkie talkie capability.

I was worried about the tiny charging plug, but so far it's been durable, even though it did obsolete all my previous Nokia accessories.

It does need a micro-mini plug for the headphones if you want to use it as a personal music player. Mine included a short Micro-to-Standard mini adapter so you can use your regular headphones.

The Settings menu allows you to reconfigure what many of the buttons will do: if you need to get to some buried menu item like the calculator often, make the Right Selector button do it. One touch and you're in business. This is a very handy feature.

Overall, I am quite pleased with the phone. The audio quality is fine, it rarely drops calls and is small, thin and lightweight. The only real problem is how fragile the outer display is. Nokia should have shipped it with a protector or engineered it better from the get-go.

Toshiba SDP74S 7-Inch Portable White DVD Player (White)

• SD Card Slot
• Dual Headphone Jacks
• Car Cord Included
• WMA Playback
• MP3 Playback

This Toshiba SDP74S 7-Inch DVD Player is very well-made and produces clear video and sound. It also comes with an assortment of accessories that you don't expect. There are a full-function remote control, a 12-volt power adapter for use inside a car, plus a RCA plug (red for right channel audio, white for left channel audio, and yellow for video) type cable that lets you connect this player to an external monitor/TV, so you can watch video on the big screen. Of course, the player has an AC adapter/Battery charger. In keeping with the times, this player also has a SD/HC memory card slot, so that it can play files on SD cards directly, in addition to playing optical media. The power switch, headphone jacks for TWO headphones, SD/HC slot, AV Out, and DC In are all located on the right side of the lower half of the player. This player can be powered by its internal battery, which will last about three hours per full charge, or it can be run on AC power. The only time I will use its built-in battery would be when I am in an airplane. Still, it's nice to know that you can use it for a few hours without any external power.

One reviewer has noted that the DVD lens is exposed when the player cover is open; this is the case with any optical media player. You should not touch it with your finger or anything else. Another reviewer complained about the volume up and down controls that don't seem to work reliably. I found that instead of clicking the up or down buttons, you should hold down the up or down button UNTIL you see a pop up volume level indicator on the screen, then you can adjust up and down precisely without any problem.

After you put a DVD in the player (make sure the DVD is seated properly by pushing it onto the player spindle until you hear clicks) and close the lid, it will make some mechanical sound as the reading head moves to play the DVD automatically. There is no need to be alarmed of the noises.

This player will play DVDs in either wide-screen (16:9) or full-screen (4:3) format. Most recent movie DVDs can play in wide-screen mode, which means the displayed image is wide and thin (no black bands on the left and right sides), and you may have the option to play either, depending on the DVD (Example: Rush Hour 3). Older movie DVD's can only play in full-screen mode (Example: Annie Hall). On wide-screen movies, some fill the entire LCD display area, while others have a thin horizontal black band near the top and bottom of the screen. This has nothing to do with the player; it depends on how the DVD was formatted when it was made.

The LCD screen has a matte finish so that there is no reflection problem when you are using the player in a well-lit room. And the screen can be rotated all the way back so it's at an 180 degrees angle in relation to the other half of the player. This means you can hang the player on a vertical surface, although there are no mounting holes on the back of the player.

Toshiba does not provide a carrying case, so I use Case Logic's $15 VNA210 to carry this player and all accessories. It is very light and comes with many pockets and a shoulder strap.

Overall, I deem this an excellent DVD player that has everything you need to play it anywhere (you can take the player to any country; the AC adapter can accommodate 100 to 240 volts (you still need plug adapters for different countries), but it can only play Region 1 (USA and Canada) and Region All DVD's. This is true for all players sold in the U.S. and Canada).

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We purchased this DVD player for our 2.5yr old. The screen is small but adequate for his usage. It's a good product for the price and my only discontent with the item is the volume control. The volume buttons are tempermental (don't consistently work when pressed) which makes it difficult for my little guy to use (and for me to quickly lower if needed :).

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I'm very pleases with this DVD player. It has nice features like two headset ports, a car power cord, a full function remote. You can adjust the screen every way you would want, 4x3, 16x9, brightness, color, etc. This player will play most all formats. All in all a great little player.

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I was going to give this as Christmas gift. However, upon opening it, I was surprised to see how portable and pretty it was. It plays any dvd I put in, and the output is fantastic... one great, little machine, for me!

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I love this DVD player. The sound is excellent and the picture is high quality in addition its look really elegant with the black and white colors. It is defiantly worth to spend a little bit more money then the cheapest DVD and receive a good quality one.

Ectaco C-Pen. 3.0 Multilingual Handheld OCR Scanner Pen

As a scholar who works with books and other printed sources a lot, I have long been on the lookout for an easy way to scan text into my laptop. I've tried using both flatbed scanners and digital cameras for this purpose, but I've found both to be awkward and time-consuming. That's why I was pleased to discover the C-Pen 20 it's not perfect, but it does the job quicker and more easily than any of the alternatives.

PROS:

It's easy to use; you just press the pointer to the page and a light comes on to let you know that the sensor is active. You then sweep the C-Pen from left to right at moderate speed as if it were a highlighter, and it converts the text on the page into electronic characters on your computer.

The text instantly appears wherever the cursor on your screen is located, so you can use this device with just about any Windows program (e.g., Word, Access, etc.).

The recognition rate is higher than I thought it would be; it's better than 99% on book-sized text. In practical terms, this means that you'll get one or two errors on average per paragraph, but these flaws are easily corrected (particularly if your spell checker highlights them for you automatically).

It's small and easily portable, so you can take it with you to libraries and archives with a laptop.

CONS:

The character recognition is sometimes thrown off by underlining and other marks on the page.

You must use it with a PC or laptop that has a USB port (it doesn't run on batteries like some scanning pens).

Even though it recognizes just about every major language written in Latin, Cyrillic, or Greek letters, it can't handle older typefaces (like German Fraktur). It also has trouble recognizing some symbols (such as footnotes).

You have to scan each line of text one at a time, so it's not necessarily the best solution if you need to copy many pages of text.

The bottom line is that the C-Pen 20 has been an excellent investment for me, and I recommend it to anyone who's looking for an easy way to transfer printed text into an electronic medium.

UPDATE (2011):

I wrote this review almost five years ago. I continue to think highly of this product despite the occasional error, I'm still amazed at how accurately it reads text most of the time. I only have two caveats to add:

1) The original grey and beige C-Pen 20 doesn't work with newer 64-bit versions of Windows, only 32-bit ones. This is tricky if you bought your PC or laptop in the past two years or so, you may be running a 64-bit version of Windows without realizing it (they both look the same to a non-technical user). You can check which version you have by going to Control Panel and selecting "System" it should say "32-bit" or "64-bit" under "System Type." If you have a 64-bit copy of Windows, you'll need to buy the newer C-Pen 3.0 or 3.5, or else see if you can find a black C-Pen 20 (which is also 64-bit compatible).

2) Digital cameras and OCR (optical character recognition) technology have improved dramatically over the past few years. If you need to scan multiple pages of text into electronic form, a digital camera and a good software program (Finereader or Omnipage) might be a better alternative. For saving snippets of text, however, the C-Pen continues to be the best solution.

I am a bit of a scanning pen fanatic. I write papers and use them to collect research data. That is why I was excited to see that C-Pen (the best scanning pen manufacturer) had come out with a new model (the first in several years). My expectation was that this model would be far better than the C10 (the previous USB scanner) given the advance in technology since its release. I was pretty disappointed overall. This model is no quicker than the C10 and no more accurate. The software does not do as good a job as the C10 and it is not uncommon to have the pen miss an entire line of text. This is particularly important since I am often scanning very rapidly and don't take time to look up at the screen to see that the text is entered correctly.

Overall, not as good as the C10 (which I would give 4 stars), but better than the Iris Pen Executive (2 stars).

Please also note that this pen does not work with Mac computers (the only USB pen that does is the Iris Pen).

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I feel completely compelled to write this review for the C-Pen 20. It far exceeds my expectation. I am a graduate student, working on a doctorate at Harvard University. It is a tool, or better yet, a weapon that has reduced my time tremendously. I wish I had it while going through my master's program.

I would say that it is about 90% accurate right out of the box without any training. I have had it about 3 weeks now, and with improved technique, I have increased its accuracy to about 95% 97%. I have found it helpful to always perform the stroke left right. It is easier for 2 reason, 1) that is the way humans read and 2) you don't have to readjust the position of your hand.

I would recommend it to anyone who has to do research, or persons who are in a profession where previous documentation is necessary.

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I am a money manager in NYC. I probably read over 150 pages of research everyday. In order for me to track ideas and not forget things it is important for me to have some sort of method to organize this information overload. My first purchase was the IRIS Executive pen. It did a horrible job of converting written text into MS WORD, the error rate was over 50% and made the task of cleaning it up twice what it would of been if I just decided to type it. I returned it within 5 days. I went ahead and purchased the C-PEN (with a return policy). What a Difference! I can run through 100 pages of research and condense it into 2 pages with minimal errors. Not only does it create legible conversion (over 90%) but once you lift the pen it creates a space for you..(no need to hit a button on pen) This is probably the only one that should be invested in, they have the idea and technology down pat. C-PEN has made my life easier!

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in a general sense, this c-pen seems OK, but:

there shouldn't be too much light (this is a problem especially at night time, i.e. under a bulb)

you shouldn't expect too much accuracy; i'm using it for Turkish texts and the overall accuracy is around 80%.

quality of the book also effects the result

tables and figures can't be scanned, of course

and finally, you've to be connected to your computer during operation.

Yet, i'm happy with this thing. It reduces the labour necessary to extract large amounts of text. Could be useful especially for PhD students.

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Denon DCM-290 CD/CD-R/RW 5 Disc Changer

• Digital servo laser mechanism
• 24bit/192kHz DACs
• Dual direction carousel rotation
• Optical and coaxial digital outputs
• Headphone jack

I'm being critical herethis is a good-sounding player. My critique would be that the sound isn't balancedit's weighted toward the highs. Not much lows or low mids. Bright-sounding (I'm sensitive to this) but not harsh.

Nice amount of detailI can understand lyrics on some songs that I never could before (our previous changer was a JVC). Changer is less "clunky" sounding than our JVC.

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This player makes my old Sony look like a clumsy tank. I enjoy it except for one problem. Scratched cds won't play. But they play fine on the boom box in the kitchen! I thought that a garage sale boom box wouldn't be able to read cds better than the Denon, but I was wrong.

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As a long time purchaser of Denon products I would not buy another Denon product. I purchased a Denon DCM 290 Cd changer. It stopped working after 13 months. I contacted Denon, they said I could send it to one of their authorized repair places, but it would not be repaired free of charge since it was over the one year warranty period. I just received a call from the repair shop. They told me that the disk table and much of the inside had to be replaced and would cost $258 which is more than the $249 I paid for it new. Unfortunately Denon no longer makes reliable products.

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I haven't been happy with this changer. It's not consistent with Denon's past history as a maker of quality components. The ability to play MP3 CDRW discs is nice. It's also nice to be able to change the other 4 discs while 1 disc continues to play.

However, a few points make this an annoying choice. Firstly, the unit is slow to operate. The disc changing motor is slow. And you cannot cue up multiple "next disc" commands to cycle through the discs, which again makes cycling through your discs slow as you wait for each individual disc.

But even more annoying is that the "Disc Sequential Random Play" operation (listed on page 10 of the manual) doesn't even work! I've spent hours trying to convince Denon's technical support that there's a problem with their firmware, but to no avail. They only insist that it's a problem with my particular unit. This being after they admit that they don't even have a DCM-290 unit at their site to test! Last time I was at Best Buy, I tested the DCM-290 they had on display -guess what? -same problem. Basically, this unit has bug in its software, and Denon refuses to fix it. But of course, Denon cheerfully continues to sell it!

So, if you don't mind a slow changer that won't cue commands, and a player that only performs some of the functions listed in its manual... Well, maybe this is the product for you. But if you're truly looking for a quality CD changer, you're better off looking elsewhere.

The DCM-290 is a solid 5-disk CD changer for a home entertainment center. I have yet to run into problems and I have owned the product for seven months. The rotator tray seems a little flimsy but CDs fits snuggly and has never got caught off track. Remote programming quickly corresponds with the unit control panel for easy and dependable use.

Verizon LG VX-5400 Cell Phone

Bought this phone because it was Verizon compatable and twenty dollars. It works fine and do not have any problems with it. It is no thrills but works. It is a get me by phone until I get something better. Old timey texting...Would recommend for an emergency phone or for someone that does not text or talk a hugh bit. It is my everyday phone and I only talk for maybe a hour total in a day and it is fine.

Great price and does all the things I need, very simple. I just want to talk, text, and use the calendar. Works great!

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1. This phone lasts 2 weeks on stand by!!!!!

2. Water will not stop this phone!

I have had this phone for 3-4 yrs every night in my humid bathroom showers before I was informed by Customer Service Representative, that I probably should not be doing that. Humidity is the same as dipping the phone in water, I guess? well, ah, I did that too... : / ah.. ahem.

The phone has fallen in the child's bathtub and the little purse belt clip would get soaked before I realize it to remove the phone from the soaking wet purse. This phone is amazing! I have never DL games, APPS, or Music tones, but I believe they are available, I just do not know what website to visit to obtain such things? My one half complaint, is that I have trouble working the Blue Tooth (My phone has blue tooth, I do not see this listed here for some reason¿?) but the trouble could be user error or the fact that the phone was consistently next to the shower with me every night for three years. I have Never operated Blue tooth functions in my life, and I'm not even sure I have the correct password. (This: depends on your talk/data plan with verizon,) .. but My phone has no memory card to remove photos, they must be upload to Verizon Pix Place at 25 cents per photo or txt pic to a friend to email back to your PC. Other that Blue Tooth, I could not see a way to get the photos off my camera phone. It seems to have pretty good memory for the price! I have over 560 photos on my phone with more memory available. My phone is not capable of carrying MP3s, however, I am sure Zune is available "live" via the web browser, just can not DL the songs due to the somewhat less than stellar memory size.

Recently, I even accidentally left the phone out in the rain. Literally. rain. I knew it was going to rain that night. I dropped the phone! Eek! I searched and searched! I could not find the phone in the dark, as it was still in "standalone mode" for movies, church and stuff. plus it is always on Vibrate. In the morning dew/rain (I am pretty sure it did rain as predicted). There was the phone! The screen even lit up for me when I opened the phone! Wow!

Finally, I am upgrading now to a new phone for a better camera.

I love this phone though! I really do! Wallpaper on main screen and front is not static. It is set by the user. I like this phone! It's simple, yet I always find some interesting new function hiding somewhere on the list. Such as "add... graphic" of small cute yellow smiley face, or even animation to boring txts. My friend sat on and broke his smart phone. I can't help but ask "How smart is your 'Smart Phone' now, mister?" : ) no, really, I had two friends that had to repair smart phone and i phone, (the iphone actually places random calls when in my friend's pocket! ! Really!! really!!!) I never did trust those touch screens. I have crushed my LG phone by laying down, my hip, my entire body weight on my friend's carpet more than once. It keeps functioning just fine. This makes me very nervous to buy a new phone! Why would I give up such an amazing phone???????? I've held on to this phone for 3 years! I love this phone! What if my next phone is not this wonderful?

My plan was pay-as-you go, with $1 per all day internet access (only on days you use it), $1 talk all day verizon to verizon, and ten cents per text message (without incurring the $1 daily use activation fee). $15 was sufficient for my texting needs. (including many 25 photo text messages, my favorite fun...).

I believe the SAR rating was like 1.2 .... for my phone, .. this Amazon phone (although same model number as under my battery) may be some version of upgrade. I don't see the blue tooth function listed. My phone even has voice recognition Command "call ____" function. I have not used this, but it seems wonderful. I've seen my friend use this with his Iphone over the car speakers. Yes, I have the same technology on my phone. Blue tooth???....Anyway, That's pretty neat, from 4 yrs ago, technology.

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This company's service was unbelievably great. This particular phone could not get service. I called and they sent a label and another phone immediately. However this one did not work for me either. They sent me another type and it was great. The service was fantastic.

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I bought 2 (used) cell phones (included 2 chargers...home and auto) from this supplier. Both units looked very good, but while one worked like new, the other had some intermittent operating issues. I called the vendor customer service number and a replacement phone was sent without any hassle. The replacement phone arrived the next day, along with a prepaid mailer to return the unit with the intermittent problems. I will be looking for this suppler the next time I need phone stuff.

Sony DVP-S550D DVD Player

• Plays DVD video, audio CD, and video CD formats
• Dolby Digital 5.1-channel decoder
• Sony precision-drive system with active tilt control
• SmoothScan high-speed search
• SmoothSlow slow-motion forward and reverse

After hours of research online, I decided to trade in my JVC XV511 DVD player for this one. Of course, I read about the lip-sync issue, but I also found out that Sony has corrected the problem with a firmware update, and models currently at the store already have this update. It was evident from reviews that apart from the lip-sync issue, the player was blowing everyone away. Now, I have to add my voice to that chorus -this product is amazing. Though the JVC had a great picture, the Sony's is absolutely stunning. With a component video connection, I see no flicker in fine edge detail, and the colors are so rich they leap off the screen. Setting up the 5.1 speaker output was easy, with an intuitive graphical interface. The remote is similarly intuitive, although it took me a few minutes to get used to the navigation button and jog wheel. The player feels solid, discs load very quickly, regular CDs sound excellent, and Sony has packed in a dozen small bonuses (like being able to save a favorite frame as the player's default display when not playing) -all of which leaves me very satisfied, even amazed. With the lip-sync issue now resolved, and unless you want to spend twice as much money, you can't do better than this player.

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No lip sync troubles, best picture of any DVD player I have auditioned so far. I tested 13th Floor, Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies and Titanic. Go DVD and when you are forced (and I mean FORCED) to endure VHS, you will think you need glasses while watching the tape. This is an outstanding player, no lip sync issues whatsoever, in fact it seemed better in that respect than the $800 Mitsubishi unit I almost bought. The sales guy steered to me to the Sony unit, said after seeing them every day, he bought the Sony. So did I. The clarity is exceptional, features are full and easy to use. Cinema sound does a passable job of simulating surround, at least until I hook up my surround speakers. The remote is well designed with the most important buttons placed in easy finger reach and made larger than the less frequently used buttons. Most of the features are available at the front panel, and the display is easy to see form across the room. On screen displays can be utilized in wide screne movies without interfereing with the picture. Still frame and frame save is a cool feature. The unit is well laid out and near perfect. You would have to spend several hundred dollars more on others units to achieve the 550's picture and sound quality. Highly recommended

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The Sony DVD-S550 is a great buy for first and second time DVD player buyers alike. It offers a tremendous combination of features and performance at a very reasonable price. I had a year and a half old Panasonic DVD player that decided to stop working and I realize now that it really did me a favor. Seeing and hearing movies on this Sony has really opened my eyes and ears to all that DVDs can offer. I mention ears because as amazing as the video quality is, the sound quality is what really blows me away (and you don't need a humongous sound system to appreciate it). You will not be disappointed by this product! It provides very near the quality level of the Sony Reference DVD-S7700 (at half the price) and features (inc. a jog dial remote) that put it over the Sony DVD-S530 (at least in my book).

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I received my Sony DVD player model S550D with a power source malfunctionig, as a result of Amazon excellent service the deffective player was substituted with a new one and all shipping expenses picked by Amazon. I could barely use the new Sony DVD player for three weeks when it experimented the same power source failure, as a result I am returning the second Sony DVD player and I do not plan on buying any Sony DVD player again. I had been a Sony fan all my life before these events.

I absolutely love this Sony product. I have been shopping for about a year now for my first DVD player and I finally decided on this one. It has left me speechless. I have a 32" JVC TV, and Kenwoods "Home Theatre in a box" system (which is Dolby-DTS ready). When I brought the Sony DVPS550D home, and hooked everything up I was amazed at the MONSTER I had created. The first movie I bought was of course the Matrix, and I can't tell you what it sounds like. I can just describe it to you in 2 words.....EARTH SHAKING. I love all the features that comes with the DVD player, and I have not experienced any Lip Sync problems at all. I highly recommend it to anyone.