KitoDesign Two Sided Picture Frame

Great picture frame and love the fact that it can record voices. However, the price was a little steep since I bought a similar one from Radio Shack for 1/2 the price!

We were so excited about this frame as a gift for our grandmothers. First of all the recording is only 10 seconds. Secondly you have to hold the frame VERY close to whatever you are recording to even hear it slightly. Poor quality and trying to get babies to talk into it was a mistake on our part. Would look for a better recorder with longer time for recording if I were to purchase this item again.

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This would make a wonderful gift/momento for your family. I intend to put my wife on one side and me on the other and then we'll leave messages that our family can listen to long after we're gone.

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Digital Bluetooth Voice Telephone Mobile Phone Recorder with Noise Reduction, Voice Activated 8GB D

firmware still has a ways to come. No clear menu how to delete recordings. I tinkered with it for 2 hours and couldn't get it to record my voice when in Bluetooth mode rather only the recipient of my call.

Polaroid PDM-0722 7" Portable DVD Player (180 degree rotating screen)

• 7'' widescreen (16:9) color LCD screen gives you a beautiful color picture
• LCD screen swivels 180°, folds flat against player for viewing convenience
• Plays DVD, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW ,Plays music CDs, CD-R/RW ,JPEG image compatible
• Built-in Dolby Digital Decoder for fantastic sound ,Built-in stereo speakers deliver sound anywhere
• ESP (Electronic Skip Protection) for an uninterrupted picture while in motion ,Switchable audio and video input/output

I bought this at least 2 years ago. We took it on several car trips and it held up just fine with two boys! We also took it along on several flights to keep the boys occupied. My only complaint is that the sound is too low, but if you use earphones it is fine. The other day, I brought it to my room to watch a movie and it was hard to hear without using earphones.

I'm trying to find a cable so we can hook it up to the TV. I can't remember if it came with one or not, but we have lost it if it did.

VideoSecu 2 Dummy Faked Imitation Security Cameras with Flashing Light LED Cost-effective Security

Dummy camera looks real enough but the description did not specify

if there was a blinking light. Kind of disappointed cause it would of made

it appear more real. Nevertheless for the price it does the job. I think there were

other options to buy that had blinking light capability.

I was a little worried about making my real cameras visible to vandals but wanted them to see that there was cameras on the property. Before we got these camera we could see snoopers walking round our home testing doors and windows and by placing these little babies out in plain site with the warning signs we have not seen a single snooper. They work. The signs fade in the sunlite but the one in the shade hasn't faded at all. I drilled a hole in the bases and ran the plastic tubes though them, tied a knot in them and mounted them to the house. They look real enough. I plan to wire them with real LEDs soon to make them appear even more real but I'm very happy with them the way they are.

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brite-View BV-980H Digital HD DVR (for Antenna and clear QAM use) ,with 320GB HDD Built-in, EPG Sup

I think this high definition single-tuner hard disk recorder was a great concept on paper, but I think it was rushed to market before the user interface was thoughtfully created and tested. I ordered one and tested it extensively for two weeks, and ultimately returned mine. Mine got returned MOSTLY because it was apparently defective (so said brite-View technical support when I explained the problem I was having -which was that it was not receiving a solid signal, so my video had pixelation in it, which in turned interfered with successful recordings -recordings would end unexpectedly midway through recording). And no, I didn't have a bad feed or bad wiring. All my other digital devices (1 HDTV and 2 other digital recorders) worked flawlessly.

I was using the unit to record not from antenna, but from cable TV (it will work with either). It does work well (assuming you don't have a defective unit like mine apparently was) to record "QAM" digital cable TV signals -that is, HD cable TV signals that are not encrypted by the cable company and do NOT require a cable company set-top box to be connected to your digital recorder or HDTV. I am just a "basic cable" subscriber and do not need/use a set-top box. My cable company (as many/most do) provides unencrypted HD channels of all the local broadcast TV channels in my area, plus a few others like community access channels. All that with no set-top box and for "only" about $20/month.

My unit's defect notwithstanding, the unit made beautiful HD recordings (when it could lock onto the cable signal).

However almost everything else about USING the unit was difficult. The menu's are not thoughtfully laid out and it takes lots of navigation to get from one feature to the next. The process of scanning for available channels, and then customizing your own list of usable and favorite channels is buggy and unfriendly. It took me LITERALLY 4 hours one evening to customize my channel list after an auto-scan of my cable feed.

Even simply trying to "channel surf" while watching live TV through its own tuner or while setting up a timed recording was frustratingly slow. It takes 2-3 seconds to go from one channel to another, so if you need to flip through 10 channels to get to another channel you want, you better not be in a rush -it could take you 30-60 seconds or more, just to change the channel! The "favorites" channel feature would help speed up that channel changing process -if it worked properly, which it does not.

Setting up timed recordings (and then later retrieving the successful recordings) are also more difficult than any other recording device I've ever used. First of all, all timed recordings are set using military time. If you are unfamiliar with military time, you have to keep making the conversions in your head (or use a cheat-sheet which I created) just to get it to record at the right PM hour (what real time is "17:30" again??)". Then finding the resulting recordings in another section of the menu system is difficult, because the resulting displayed file names are written/formatted in techno-geek code (again including military time references in the recordings' file names), and again you have to do some mental decoding to interpret which file is which. Nowhere in the set up and then the recording of programs can you simply enter the program's actual name for easy reference. This unit is nowhere even close to the ease of programming of say Tivo (the gold standard), or even of Windows Media Center, or how my Panasonic digital recorders work. Even 1980's era VHS recorders made program recording easier!

So, even though the unit makes an excellent actual recording of an HD signal, I have to give it a thumbs down ultimately, due to its other many shortcomings in its user interface. If you don't care about an easy-to-use intuitive interface, and are a VERY VERY patient individual, you might actually like this recorder.

If you are seriously considering buying this unit, I strongly recommend that you first read through the "AV Science Forum" which has a long thread of discussion about this unit from those who've purchased it. Google "AVS Forum" and then at site, search "BV-980H."

Probably like several other users, I heavily rely on digital OTA channels and netflix to feed my TV in the daily life. I found brite-view DVR might be a choice since it supports EPG schedule recording and usb port for increasing recording capability.

First, I have only used it for few days so I wasn't able to test out all of the features but I did get to test out the basic ones. Here are some thoughts:

1) the size,weight and built quality is decent enough.

2) user manual is not that useful and you probably need to download newer version on their website.

3) after finish initial setup, you have to press "menu" button on the remote to scan TV channels.

4) remote control is not really responsive.

5) it takes between 5-10 secs to load EPG and you can view detailed program description from EPG.

6) video quality is good. (I am using RCA ANT1650 with BV-980H)

7) takes too many steps to play my recordings under file management. (got the email form them and they will add shortcut on the menu for ME :)

When I emailed and called technical support to ask how I should scan OTA channels from 980H (not showing on instruction), they also told me they will update new firmware to fix some bugs and improve the performance by end of July. So far, it works as advertised to get 4 stars. I will wait for their new firmware and upadte my review later.

Buy brite-View BV-980H Digital HD DVR (for Antenna and clear QAM use) ,with 320GB HDD Built-in, EPG Sup Now

I tried two of this item & neither was satisfactory. I returned the first one for a replacement. Now I am returning the second one for a refund. Both units had the same problems. The timer record function on both units was unreliable. They would often fail to record the scheduled time frame. The sound was also a problem. There would often be no sound when playing a recorded program or when viewing real time. I could get the sound to come in by toggling the source button on the remote (can not toggle this during play back, so I had to make sure the sound was working before starting play back.) This is not a game I wanted to play. The unit is not user friendly. It takes too many steps to find & play a recorded program. When viewing the list of recorded programs, there is no thumbnail preview. There is no provision to delete multiple programs at one time. There is no provision to lock (protect) a recorded program so that it does not accidently get deleted. These are the most irritating problems. There were more. I do not recommend this product.

Read Best Reviews of brite-View BV-980H Digital HD DVR (for Antenna and clear QAM use) ,with 320GB HDD Built-in, EPG Sup Here

Great idea, extremely poor execution.

I would only recommend this to someone who wanted to waste time and money. I returned mine.

Some of the problems:

1. Manual is nearly worthless. Eg, does not tell you how to play back what you have recorded. No support contact info in the manual.

2. The firmware that came with the unit is aweful. Must have been a 7th grade school programming project.

3. The firmware upgrade is not that much better. Must have been an 8th grade school programming project.

4. Could not get it into Pacific Daylight Savings time. No matter what I did, it would never show the right time. Finally gave up and let it be Pacific Standard time. This required a lot of conversion just to set up a recording time.

5. Twice I left the unit alone for a couple days. Turned on the TV. Unit had locked up on its own. This required a reboot by unplugging power.

6. Rebooting from turning power off and on caused some of the programming to disappear.

7. Program guide that loads on the screen is slow to load and slow to respond to the remote control.

8. Support is pretty much non-existent. My second call was never returned.

There is a need for a high-quality device to record over-the-air TV. Whichever company can actually make it happen will be a big winner. The company that put this device together is unlikely to be the big winner.

Interestingly, LG made an LCD digital TV with a built-in DVR that gets program information over the air. A friend has one of these and uses it only with over-the-air TV and it is fantastic. It is an LG 42LD1DR. Why LG does not produce a stand-alone digtial receiver with DVR is beyond me, because they obviously know how to make it work well.

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Written October 24, 2011:

It gets the job done... barely.

It does some things very well:

I can't tell the difference between the original broadcast and a recording.

If you record to a USB Drive, you can move the USB drive to a PC and play the recordings back or (using your own software) burn a DVD for your Aunt Millie. (You have to set-up the USB Drive recording in advance, it`s not possible to copy programs between the internal hard drive and a USB drive after the fact.)

If the power fails: The settings and recording schedule are remembered.

However, after playing with the brite-view bv-980h for just a couple hours I found...

Live TV

----------

The info button displays the Date/Time, Channel Name, Program Name and etc, but does not display the Episode Description. (The Episode Description can be seen from the EPG by highlighting a program.)

If you pause Live TV: When you start to play again, a large overlay banner is displayed at the bottom of the screen until you exit the time delay function.: Really annoying.

While recording a TV Show from the schedule , a large overlay banner is displayed at the top of the screen: Very annoying if you want to watch a show while it is being recorded.

Electronic Programming Guide (EPG)

-----------------------------------------------

I *assume* that all single tuner DVRs must tune to each channel to retrieve that channel's guide information. That would explain why it takes about 15 seconds to display each 6-channel page of guide information.

However, the brite-view makes this issue worse, because:

1) It does not remember *any* EPG info. If you page forward, then back, you still have to wait 15 seconds for the first page to reload. It should remember the entire guide for at least an hour.)

2) It uses the tuner to display the currently selected channel (It should use the tuner to retrieve the EPG info for the *next* page.)

3) You can not jump to a channel within the EPG by entering the channel number on the remote. Obviously, you should be free to jump anywhere within the EPG by entering the channel number.)

4) It does not have page-up/page down keys. If you want to display the next page, you have to press the Menu Down key six times, and each time, you have to wait a couple seconds while it tunes to that channel. (The channel up/down keys should move a single channel. While the menu up/down keys should move an entire page.)

I can receive 30 channels. Working as fast as I can, it takes me almost 2 minutes to bring up the guide and page down to the last (fifth) page.

While viewing the Electronic Program Guide, you can set a recording by highlighting a show and pressing the record button. However:

1) There is a bug: If I page backwards from the first page to the last page, then highlight a program on the last page and press record: It will record the wrong channel. (It will record the channel from the same position on the first page, not the channel from the last page.)

2) There is no way to record a series from the EPG. (You can schedule a single recording, exit the EPG, go into the Menu and change the scheduled recording from single time to repeating Daily/M-F or weekly. That process takes about 15 to 20 button presses.)

3) If you attempt to record a program that has already started, you will receive the message "Date/Time not feasible". (You can record a program that has already started by pressing the record button from Live TV.)

4) You can not tell what shows are scheduled for recording from the EPG (After pressing the record button, a red dot is initially displayed in the episode description area, but the dot is lost as soon as you move off the episode.)

Menu System and Settings

---------------------------------

In my time zone (EST), it's not possible to set the clock to the correct time. Manually changing the time has no effect. Turning Daylight Savings Time (DST) on and off has no effect. There are only 6 Time Zones to select, EST is the east most. The Automatic Time set is off by an hour. At least people in other time zones can correct the time by setting the box 1 time zone to the east.

It takes *seven* button presses to display the list of recorded shows. (There is a nice big "Source" button that toggles between Live TV and Video In. It should rotate between Live TV, Recorded Shows and Video In.)

Editing the Favorite Channel list has no effect.

It's not possible to go directly between the EPG and the Menu. (You have to exit to Live TV, then enter the other.)

The menu button is not consistent. It should always toggle between Live TV and the home screen of the menu. However, if you are viewing the list of recordings (a menu sub-screen) it will toggle between that and the home screen of the menu.

Remote Control

--------------------

There is no button to directly access recordings.

The EPG button is small and buried amongst the skip forward and skip backward controls.

Conclusion

--------------

The bv-980h was released over 6 months ago, and there have not been any firmware updates.

brite-view should show some pride in their product and fix some of these issues.

============================================

Update: I could not take it anymore. I'm returning the DVR. Instead, I'm going to use my office PC as a DVR.

My Office PC has an HDMI output. Also, I already have a USB ATSC tuner and a media center remote control. I've purchased a 25 foot HDMI Cable ($5), and a 30 foot Active USB extension cable ($12), I'm going to run both cables from my office into my basement celling and into my living room.

Wish me luck!

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Panasonic BL-C131A Network Camera Wireless 802.11

My wife and I wanted to keep an eye on the nanny with our baby from work. After researching the network cameras for several months, it seemed that only Panasonic cameras consistently received positive (usually glowing reviews) whereas cameras from other major brands like Linksys, D-Link, etc received mediocre or poor reviews. So I went with Panasonic. And after about a month, I have to say I am very impressed with it. Some background: I have a classic Linksys WRT54G 802.11g router, with 2 WinXP PCs connected to it via ethernet and 3 more PCs connected wirelessly; plus, I have AT&T/SBC DSL service via a Speedstream 5100 DSL modem. If you're moderately computer literate, you should have no problem following the included instructions to setup (view and control) the camera in wired mode or in wireless WiFi mode.

But if you want to setup the camera to be viewed (and controlled) from the internet, you need to do a bit more work. And this is where Panasonic's excellent, excellent customer support comes in. Panasonic's support line is 8_0_0-2_7_2-7_0_3_3; they are open Mon-Fri 9AM-9PM and Sat/Sun 10AM-7PM Eastern US Time; this tech support is available to you for the LIFE of the product. They will walk you through how to setup the camera, configure your router (for, among other things, port forwarding), and register with Panasonic's FREE Dynamic DNS web service. This last point is important: Panasonic network cameras include FREE Dynamic DNS hosting service for the life of the product; other brands offer the service for an annual fee.

Okay, step-by-step, here's how to config the camera for internet viewing:

First, if you use DSL as I do (as opposed to cable broadband), you have to configure the DSL modem for "bridge mode." (If you don't use DSL, then you can skip this step.) This is because DSL modems act as a router, and port forwarding cannot work behind both the DSL modem's router and (in my case) the Linksys WRT54G router. If you want, you can call your DSL tech support to ask them to walk you through how to "bridge" your DSL modem. But here's what I did.

1. Login to your DSL modem (for me, it's 192.168.0.1) using your DSL account (for me, it's my SBCglobal email address).

2. Select Advanced >> PPP Location

3. Select Bridged Mode (PPPoE is not used), then Change PPP Location

4. When prompted, restart the DSL modem

5. Login to your router (for me, it's 192.168.1.1)

6. Under Setup> Basic Setup >> Internet Connection Type, select PPPoE and enter the DSL login & password info you normally would enter in your DSL modem to authenticate your DSL service.

7. At this point, the "bridging" should have been successful. To check that bridging has been successful, click Status >> Router, and check that you are "connected" with an IP address showing. If successful, you should also see that your DSL modem's "internet" LED light is off while your router's "internet" light is on. What you basically have done is to move the point of authentication for your DSL service from the DSL modem to your router; your DSL modem merely acts as a bridge for the DSL service to your router.

8. Now, we move on to configuring the camera itself. I assume that the camera has already been configured for wired and wireless mode. Login to the network camera (for me it's, 192.168.1.253).

9. Click Setup. Change the Port No. from the default of 80 to 50000 (fifty thousand) and enter the IP address of the camera (for me, it's 192.168.1.253). Click Save, and the camera will restart. When it finishes restarting (taking as long as 1.5 min), it'll bring you back to the "Top" home page of the camera config screen.

10. Log back into your router, and go to Applications & Gaming, where you'll be able to set up port forwarding.

11. In the Port Range, enter 50000 as "Start" and 50000 as "End." Enter the IP Address of the camera (for me, 192.168.1.253). Check Enable. Save Settings.

12. Now, log back into your camera. Go to Setup >> DynamicDNS. Select viewnetcam-dot-com, then Next.

13. Click on "Your Account Link" to bring up the viewnetcam.com registration page, where you then select New Registration. Enter your desired registration info and select your domain name at viewnetcam-dot-com (e.g. yourname-dot-viewnetcam-dot-com). Click Choose.

14. Now, you will be shown a page confirming your registration. Under DDNS status, you will see Active-waiting. You need to wait up to 10min as the domain registration occurs, at which time, the status will change to Active.

15. We're almost done; stay with me! From WinXP Start Menu, click Run and type "cmd" to bring up a DOS window.

16. In the DOS window, type "ipconfig/all", which shows your computer's various network information. Under Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection, copy down the two addresses under DNS Servers.

17. Log back into your camera, select Setup, and enter the 2 DNS Server addresses from ipconfig/all in the 2 DNS boxes.

18. Go back to viewnetcam-dot-com, login to your account, and check that the DDNS status is now Active. If so, then you're all ready to go!

19. Go to yourname-dot-viewnetcam-dot-com:50000 to see your network camera on the internet!

OVERVIEW

The BL-C131A is a wireless/router based camera (no PC needed). In my view, this is the ONLY way cameras should be used due to the unstable PC connected solutions (e.g., PC freeze-up, lost power, etc). It is an IP based system which needs its own local internet address which the included software does a pretty good job setting up automatically.

MY EXPERIENCES

I have tried over 20 wireless web cameras from 7 brands over the last 5 years ($100-$600) and none are close to the performance, reliability, ease of setup of the Panasonic cams for a consumer based product. Dlink used to lead the pack until the BL-C20A/30A units came out. I was a fan of Dlinks but the software setup, remote camera configurations, and Viewnetcam dynamic DNS service of the the Pana's is just the best today.

ADVANTAGES

The included software is the best on the market for finding the camera on your system and trying to configure it automatically. Most software engineers should be SHOT due to sloppy code but the Panasonic software and firmware (software inside the cameras) is pretty good for setup and reliability (I am an electrical engineer so I know the sloppy way most of these guys think).

Tech support for Panasonic is the ONLY support I have contacted from 7 brands with AMERICANS speaking ENGLISH (not "Engrish"). Their patience and overall knowledge is truly outstanding and worth every extra penny this camera costs.

I highly recommend you also buy the Panasonic wireless router. It automatically configures with the cameras and becomes really easy to find/control the cameras.

The ability to reset/reconfigure the cameras remotely is INVALUABLE! I am often travleing in China, at my home in Chicago, or my home in Florida and want to make changes. I can do it remotely with 100% success after the first setup. I was even able to configure some cams in Chicago and Fedex to my wife in Florida and they booted up into the other system perfectly!

The Viewnetcam dynamic DNS service is stunningly reliable. It has never gone down and my cameras reset/refind themselves every hour so if your local ISP dynamically changes your IP address (Comcast is worst) you are always going to have the cams back up in 1 hour.

The ability to snap images, group small video screens, and "mouse-point" the cameras via the pan-tilt-zoom are outstanding.

The built in microphones are AMAZINGLY sensitive and pick up small noises remarkably well. I could hear the kids playing outside the house with cams inside.

The built in multi-screen servers can integrate different models of cameras. For example, I use a BL-C131A cam as #1 at my mom's house for PTZ and audio. I then add a BL-C30A for simple PTZ photo/video and a BL-C20A for fixed photo/video. They all coexist in one screen and work beautifully!

The photo snaps work PERFECTLY for building a simple web page and placing multiple screen snaps on 1 page (I placed 8) thus a super slim matrix of what is happening in my homes. Each photo at 320x240 is only 8kb so they download fast.

The mobile function (viewing on a cell phone browser) works INCREDIBLY well. I use it everyday on my Treo700P via Sprint.

DISADVANTAGES/CAUTIONS

ANY web cam is tedious to setup, no matter the brand. Be patient, and call Pana's tech support before returning the unit.

DON'T expect HD quality video these are 640x480 screens as best and the upload speed of your home network will always be the limiting factor. I do not recommend more than 4 cams online at once since this overloads even a good 768K upload system.

The pan-tilt controls are outstanding. Lots of left-right-down travel but up is limited. Also, the zoom is a digital zoom (NOT an optical zoom) thus very pixelated and not worth much.

The cams can fight for packets and "burble" your VOIP telephone calls.

SUMMARY

Outstanding product. I now own 14 units around the world and all are stone-cold reliable. Just great products.

Buy Panasonic BL-C131A Network Camera Wireless 802.11 Now

I have experience with D-Link cameras, and this one is much better. Setup was a multi-step process, but went smoothly, and the free internet address really works. The camera has yet to lose signal, and I have it positioned a the farthest end of my wirelss network. Picture is clear, sound is ok, interface is very good. Only works well with Internet Explorer. On a Mac, the video will display in Firefox but without sound. I haven't expored all of the features yet, but the main thing is that it works (more than can be said for many wireless products).

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I purchased four of these cameras and found out that the recording software included with it comes with a license to record only one camera. If you want to record more than one camera, you have to purchase an upgraded version with additional licenses and that lists for $399 and Amazon has it for $315.03 + Shipping Network Camera Software

If you are purchasing more than one camera for Surveillance purpose, make sure to take in to account of the additional costs.

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You can do all setup via the builtin web server even firmware updates. There is no need for installing anything from the included (windows only) CD. Streaming MP4 or MJPEG video works right outta the box in Safari as does the static captures no need for drivers or anything else.. Those looking for typical, painless MacOSX setup will get it with this Panasonic webcam..

Optical Splitter

• 1 Female TosLink x 2 Female TosLink
• Gold Connectors
• Compatible with Male TosLink cables
• Color: Black

I'm using this backwards from how it's made. Instead of using it to split one output into two, I'm splitting one input into two and it works fine. My receiver only had one optical input but I had two devices with optical outputs. Using this I now have both my XBox 360's optical output and my cable box's optical output going into the splitter and then one cable going from the splitter into my receivers single optical input. Some people told me this wouldn't work but I guessed that it would since it shouldn't make a difference which way the light is traveling. Much more convienient then buying one of those selector switch boxes and having to manually change the selection all the time.

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I ordered one of these because my receiver only has 1 optical input & I needed a second input for my X-Box 360. I also ordered 2 relatively cheap optical cables from the Parts Express seller as well. This splitter has no optical connector on the end of the Y so a short optical cable + a longer one to run from one of the inputs to the 360 was also necessary. The other input was used for an OPPO 970HD Dvd Player & I already had the cable to use for that one.

It's pretty straight forward how to use the splitter. The time spent hooking this up was maybe 10 minutes max & would've probably been even less had I had quick access to the back of my receiver. Originally I had no idea something like this existed & I stumbled upon this product by accident. The price is more than reasonable & will save you from buying a new receiver if you need a second optical input. I've had mine for about a week & have not noticed an distortion or changes in sound quality.

Highly recommended.

Read Best Reviews of Optical Splitter Here

Understand how your devices are working prior to purchasing this item if you are attempting to use it as a 2-1 (2 outputs to 1 input) solution for your A/V receiver. It did not work in my case because the item does not block any signals. So, if you have a device like I do that doesn't turn off the optical signal when not in use (my DirecTV HD-DVR), it will not work correctly since the signal gets mixed/corrupted.

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I bought this to use as a combiner (switch) because I had two audio devices outputting optical digital audio, but my AV receiver only had one digital audio input. I specifically didn't want a device with a manual switch because I didn't want to have to manually adjust that switch on top of already changing my TV input every time I wanted to go from watching TV to playing Xbox 360, or vice versa.

This device works perfectly for my application! Both of my audio sources go into the end with two inputs, and my AV receiver is hooked up to the end with one input (which I guess would make it an output?). If my Xbox 360 is outputting audio, the AV receiver plays that audio. If my cable box is outputting audio, the receiver plays that audio. The only caveat is that one of the devices *MUST* be turned off and not emitting any signal, because if the device is receiving two signals at once, nothing will come out of the receiver (as the signal will be a garbage combination of both inputs). This is fine for me, however, as I can easily have my cable box or Xbox off if I'm using the other device.

I see this product seems to have a lot of mixed reviews, and a lot of people claiming it doesn't work. It could have something to do with product defects, but mine seemed to be constructed well enough. Another problem I could foresee is that you need to make sure, if you're using this as a combiner, that only one audio source is being inputted to it at a time! Even if some devices are off, they could still be sending some kind of signal through the output (which you can easily tell by looking at the optical audio jack when it's off and seeing if its still got that red glow). To put it simply, if you got two audio signals going through, nothing will come out of this.

I also couldn't be happier with the price of this, especially when compared to the ridiculously priced switches that also include HDMI inputs and whatnot.

I received my switch/splitter today in the mail, popped in the toslink cables from the Xbox 360 and PS3 and ran one to the receiver. It worked perfectly for me. I think that the major issue people were having with other components is that if either component connected constantly sends the audio signal regardless of activity, it will not work; however for the Xbox 360 and PS3, neither of them send the signal for audio unless they are on, so it works flawlessly.

Rando HD CAR DVR 1280 x 720P Camcorder Video Camera Night Vision 2.5-Inch LCD with HDMI Cable

• HDMI Cable included
• Built-in microphone
• Built-in LED for night vision
• 1280 x 720 HD
• 140 degree wide view-angle

The image is very nice. Just as described.Is working as expected.This is a must have for everyone on the road today.

Buy Rando HD CAR DVR 1280 x 720P Camcorder Video Camera Night Vision 2.5-Inch LCD with HDMI Cable Now

No problems yet, good image quality in daylight, not the best in the night. This camera does include an HDMI port and a night-vision photo sensor, which fake versions of this camera don't have.

Read Best Reviews of Rando HD CAR DVR 1280 x 720P Camcorder Video Camera Night Vision 2.5-Inch LCD with HDMI Cable Here

Pros:

Cheep & inexpensive.

Suction cup holds securly to windshield. Won't fall.

Has all the features one would want in a device like this.

Cons:

have to remove battery every 2 weeks to keep it working.

Resolution. Not Great. Same quality Ive seen on 640ish cameras.

Reset device does not reset all options.

Device & Manual quality show this is an obvious Knock-Off Product.

Overall

-It works "OK". I would recommend spending $100 and get the TopDawg Model. It has to work better.

-Guess for $50 I can't complain too much. At this price I didn't have great expectations.

OKEBA Analog Stereo 3.5mm Jack To Digital Optical S/PDIF Coaxial Audio Converter

I had an LP player with no digital output. Recently, I purchased a sound bar with only digital inputs. This adapter completely solved the problem. It works perfectly.

CoiTAC Tactical Pistol Rifle Picatinny Rail Rechargeable Compact Digital Recorder Camcorder Video C

this thing is the best thing since sliced bread.. i have run it on my 930SPX mossberg, my AR 15 it is great!! I would recommend it to anyone who likes to record their shooting activities, the price is right too.. Im very happy that i bought it!

Nokia C5-03 Unlocked GSM Phone with 5 MP Camera and Ovi Maps Navigation Optimized for AT&T--U.S. Ve

Thru the years I found Nokia to make some of the best phones and this one is not an exception. I bought it because it is a 4 band (world) unlocked GSM, very light and small indeed, full touchscreen, responsive, quick and accurate typing, overall the phone works fast, has a bit slow GPS (when not assisted) with free maps and nice voice navigation, good WiFi, working radio, good loud speaker and call quality, decent email (old style) and normal camera, also the battery supposed to last longer. Overall, it does well what it supposed to do for the price of $180. There is one important thing, the US model has UMTS (3G bands) 900/1900/2100, so the 1900 works with AT&T, but no 850 AT&T or 1700 T-mobile. Strange, but the box label and some of the Amazon description are both wrong as they show 1700. I confirmed that with Nokia as well and the phone is working fast on AT&T 3G on 1900. The phone is made in Mexico, that's fine. It has the plastic look, but it is the simple clean design and the cute shape that makes it look neat too. I am not sure why there is no variety of colors on the US market like elsewhere, that is rather frustrating. The operating system is the typical Nokia, no news there.

I bought this phone despite of certain reviews that claimed the product was defective or hard to operate and had a very hard to control touch screen. I received the phone this weekend exactly on time for Christmas. It is unlocked and works internationally (currently it is working in Costa Rica the country where I live in). Touch screen is harder to control than others but nothing out of this world way better than an LG touchscreen if you ask me. As far as the model is concerned (since I read a few reviews saying this one was the Nokia C5-04) the model IS the Nokia C5-03 and there IS no such thing as the C5-04. The model does work with wi-fi I tried it out already and apps work beautifully (so far I have tried facebook mobile, facebook chat, skype and whatsapp). As far as the product box is concerned (one review from Costa Rica claimed the box arrived open) it was fine, the box is opened to inspect the contents of it but the phone arrived in perfect conditions and worked perfectly. I rate this phone (even though its from 2010 a 4.5 star rating, shame Amazon will only let me rate it 4 or 5) but it is a great phone with a perfect operational system and specs for the price it has. A must buy if you want a really great phone at a great price!

If you have any questions message me :)

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It is a telephone, compact but heavy, that gives a strength sensation him. All the applications that unload of OVI, in their majority are gratuitous and allows to improve the applications of the telephone.

I have compared it with the N8 and the only difference this in the pixels of the camera that in the N8 is of 12 and in the C6-01 is of 8.

I recommend it to the 100%.

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I own this phone for over 11 months.

The good:

Cute phone

Nice call quality

Great Wifi reception

Pre-installed Nokia Maps

Good speakers (sound is loud and clear than other high end smart phones)

Camera 5MP (I made lot of videos with this and they came out to be of good quality)

Microsoft Exchange

Chat client (Yahoo/google/hotmail)

Not good:

The screen size of 3.2 inch (should have been 3.5 inch). This makes browsing hard.

Internal memory is very less (my phone always runs under 15MB) and hence cannot use microsoft exchange for office mails (If I use Exchange email, phone complains of low memory and close few open applications)

Touch screen is sometimes hard to operate

With all the above pros and cons.. I could use this phone for

Voice and text

Basic internet browsing over wifi

Take photos and videos

If that is all what you plan to do with this phone.. go for it..

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I am using it in VENEZUELA .. Movilnet and Movistar. Excellent phone, good sound, nice touchscreen. Nice connectión to internet, nice wifi, nice sound. Speaker sond is very good. I did not give 5 stars because the phone has low internal memory and the screen is a little bit small even if work great.

HP Pavilion DV7-6b78us Entertainment Notebook/ 2nd generation Intel Core i7-2630QM Processor 2.00GH

I own a couple of this model ,for 2 months now ,got it from office depot for $700.00 a piece ,Pros good quality build, i7 quad cores 8 treads is more than capable on any task I put this machine through,keyboard is very responsive,dual harddrive compartments ,screen quality better that my 17 inch toshiba satelite, 6 gig ram is big enough memory I push this computer to the limit and it will only use a bout 4 gig of ram space so no need to waste your money on upgrading your ram to more than 6 gig ,also the i7 quadcores 8 hypertrades cores is alot of cores if your doing basic stuff your only ganna use about 3 to 4 treads at a time ,unless your using it for photoshop CS5 ,photoshop ligthroon 4.0 or gaming then 4 to 6 threads will start to kick in ,but if you used any 3D programs like ZBrush or Maya ,then you will start to used 6 to 8 threads but still it wont even used more than 60 percent CPU power because you have 8 cores spreading the load ,so unless your into 3d stuff you really dont need the i7 ,the i5 will do great and youll save some of that hard earn money ,even the AMD A8 quadcore series APU models will also be powerful enough ,the way I see it i7 quadcore 8 threads models are for people who have money to waste or for people who thinks its really that much of a defferent when it comes to power ,but I believe its all about tricking you people to spend more money ,beware do not spend more money on things that you dont even need ,the reason why I bought this computer is to test the power and because I work on computers to be familiar with latest stuff,Cons the hard drive is only 5400rpm having 7200rpm would be better ,the harddrive tend to heat up because of lacking ventalation holes and the harddrive is pack so tight in the first comparment,simple fix take the harddrives cover drill bigger holes ,also transfer the harddrive from first to the second compartment because it has more space to cool down,also be careful on taking out and put in the harddrive Ram cover back ,its very fragile almost impossible to take out and put back in with out damaging the pigs that hold it in place ,to take the cover out push the battery release to the opposite side that will help push the harddrive-Ram cover out then just grab and pull slowly ,installing it back in , the last part that came off is the first one to go in if your not sure what your doin dont atempt or youll just damage the cover pigs and it will never stay back in ....

I've owned this computer for about a year now.

Primarily, I'm a gamer... Why didn't I purchase an Alienware? overpriced. The graphics card in this system is a 1 gig dedicated card. Once you figure out how to lock it to this graphics... you will have a much better experience.

The only thing I wish I did was install an ssd drive for a boot drive. My kid and Fiance decided to upgrade my memory to 16 gig... Didn't make a big deal. i'd go 8 if I had ot do it over, and spend the balance on the SSD. Other than that... I'm completely happy with this system. Fast, I7, Good size HD/ Enough ram to not need anything.

Don't worry about the system. It will handle almost vertyhing thrown at it.

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HP has very good customer service. I bought used laptop and found that the battery doesn't work. I called HP and they helped me to solve the problem. Now I don't have any complains. It works fast and doesn't overheat.

The only CON is the bottom cover you must be VERY careful removing it. Pins are very fragile and it's easy to break them.

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Im having to replace the charging cord already replaced the battery, the webcam cord was loose, the computer was scraped on the top. all in all im pissed but I guess I will live!

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I have owned this laptop for several months and it has a wonderful i7 processor, plenty of memory and a large hard drive. The 17 inch monitor and keyboard is great for editing Excel, Word and PowerPoint presentations along with watching movies. The speakers are good, too! Most importantly, the battery life gets 8-9 hours of continuous use depending on what is running. Overall, I highly recommend this laptop if you want a powerhouse, portable computer.

AVerTV HD Bravo - PCI-E ATSC/ClearQAM Digital TV Tuner

I use it with an antenna and windows media center. It was easy to install. My computer acts as a DVR now.

I gave this 5 stars because of the card itself.

Software that comes with it is horrible, but there are other free alternatives, including WMC.

But the quality is great, I get close to 20 channels with a simple old antenna I had from 10 years ago.

HD quality is amazing, both sound and picture.

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Works as advertised. I have windows 7. just needed to go to Avertv site to download latest drivers. Works extremely well with media center.

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I cannot get it to receive my cable channels. and the channels that I do receive they freeze up I don't know if it's because I'm using

windows xp or maybe i need to update my operating system to windows 7

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I worked with intensely for several days, but it was difficult to change channels, and I found it impossible to record a program.

Sent it back and received a prompt refund.

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Sony DCRTRV320 Digital Camcorder

I bought this camera after trying out the 450x zoom in the store. Other factors triggering the purchase were Nightshot and Picture Memory. This camera's ergonomics are outstanding. The camera turns itself off after a minute or so in camera mode. This does not happen in (picture) memory mode. Memory (still) Pictures upload via a serial link only (no USB). Picture quality is very good. I successfully uploaded recorded video from the camera to my Windows 2000 computer via a Western Digital PCI IEEE 1394 card using the Ulead software supplied on CDROM with the 1394 card. My first (very short).avi file made with the Ulead software was > 100 Mbytes.

. I have ordered, but not yet received, the Sony 2x teleconverter lense so that I can get less pixellation at maximum useable magnifcation.

I also bought an 8-hour battery. I recommend 2 8-hour batteries and a rapid charger (which works off both AC and 12VDC instead of the 12-hour battery. With two batteries and a quick charger you should never run out of juice.

Nightshot works well up to about 15 feet but uses substantially more power than without, so battery life is decreased. An image intensifier attachment would be a *really* handy accessory for long range nighttime videotaping. I plan to try using the 320 with both an astronomical telescope and a microscope in the near future.

Even tough I don't own this model, I own one very similar... The DCR-TRV103. This is the newer version of the model up (TRV310)and it has only gotten better. I purchased the camera for making a claymation movie and an action short for a class project. I spent over 200 hours working with all the footage and the firewire port is invaluable! Not only is the sound and video quality unparelleled, the speed at which it is transfered keeps you from getting bogged down waiting for the video to load. The night vision, remote control and special effects provided in the package are superb quality and easy to use. As for durablity, my camera was hit by gravel from car tires and a hail of exploding fireworks and has escape them without even a ding. The only problems I really faced with the camera where the short battery lifes on the stock battery. However, a replacement 8 hour is around $100 and is a good replacement for the 1.5 hour if you plan to film a wedding or long birthday party. Another more-minor problem was the echo-effect on the sound at a distance, however, this plagues every other camera on the market and can be easily fixed with an external microphone from radio shack. Also, the digital recording process takes double the normal recording on 8mm tapes, so if you don't transfer the video off the camera and re-record over, find a place that sells the tapes cheap. Other than that, however, the camera has worked perfectly and has produced some very high-quality video for a non-commerical video camera.

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I just bought the DCRTRV720 the 320's bigger brother. It has a bigger LCD screen, a color viewfinder and a remote. The bigger LCD screen and the remote were the motivating factors over the 320.

This is definitely the most terrific camera I have ever worked with. The picture quality is outstanding, and there is absolutely no shortage of features. Combined with the my Apple PowerMac G4 Cube and it's editing software iMovie, this camera absolutely rocks.

I bought this specifically for digital work, but liked the versatility of being able to take existing standard 8 and Hi 8 tapes and play them back into my Mac so that they can be used for editing. There is no range of cameras on the market other than the Sony DCRTRV range that will allow you to do this. MiniDV is also way more expensive.

Also cool are the digital stills that you can take with this camera. I bought a digital camera just before I bought the camcorder and I am now really sorry that I did. The camcorder does a much better job of the digital stills than the digital camera does.

I would recommend this camcorder range, and especially the 720 over anything else in the market.

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I got my video camera on June 10th and have been using it almost everyday since. I've used it on everything from taping around the house to taping weddings. It's very easy to use, even with all of the features. The best of which has to be the 'info' battery which tells you exactly how much time you have remaining on the battery. It also takes digital pictures in addition to video. The only drawback is the the battery has to be charged while on the camera. The first thing I bought extra was an external charger so that I can charge one battery while still using the camera.

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I'm quite pleased with the audio and video quality of this camcorder, as well as the plethora of features and effects (though most I'll probably never use). I like the steadyshot, nightshot, and being able to shoot in widescreen format -those are my favorite features. What I'm terribly disappointed in with this camera is the quality of the still images; I get better quality from a disposable. In short, stills look absolutely terrible. I have fooled with taking stills under a variety of conditions, and they only look "decent" under the most optimal lighting circumstances. I can't complain too much since this is a secondary feature of the camcorder, and the video and audio really are remarkable, but I wish I had known that I'd also have to buy a digital still camera when shopping for this one.

DC1130 Purple digital clip camera with built in LED flash light

My daughter loves to take pictures so got for her to take pictures of her summer with me.in order to download pic.package tells you to install the disc.IT DIDNT COME WITH ONE!!! tryed to find on internet cant find!!?? I have a new compt.but package says you will loose pic.if battery goes dead so still have it pluged in!!!!

Pissed!!! Realy nice to do to a seven year old.

This was a gift for my young adult girls. They loved it. I feel a peace of mind because they have a flashlight and camera always at hand. Thanks!

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Jensen JDTV-350 3.5-Inches TV Tuner/Receiver - Black

• Full ATSC Digital Broadcast Receiver, Digital Up/Down Tuning
• Digital Volume Control, Auto Channel Programming, Closed Captioning
• Rubberized Cabinet, Telescopic Antenna, External Magnetic Base Antenna included
• Headphone Jack, Built-in Speaker, Stereo Earbuds, Carrying Pouch
• Power: Built-in Lithium Ion Battery or AC Adaptable (AC Adaptor included)

Small and easily pocketable.

Very light weight and thin.

Decent reception with built in antenna, comes with bigger external antenna as well.

Good battery life.

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At first i was very pleased but after about 4 days it stopped working and i had to return it and still havent got my money back

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Very good product and works well. The only thing I don't know how to change battery after 500 times recharge.

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Don't expect to receive too many channels or have a battery with more than 2 hours run time between charges, but the picture is good, the sound is OK and it's a good overall portable TV, in my opinion. It's good to add it to your power outage / emergency kit.

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No reception even with included external antenna. External antenna is actually smaller than built-in, but it has magnetic base to attach to larger metallic object.

DVR 410 Digital Camcorder - 1.8" LCD - CMOS - Strawberry

I wasn't very impressed with this, but it was a gift for my 9 yr old and it worked for the price. It wasn't expensive and you could tell right away since it was made of plastic and was very light. Unfortunately, it sucked the batteries dead within a day (yes...1 day) and it didn't come with a memory card...which you really needed to do anything with it. This was a problem considering I ended up losing 6 months of photos when my husband gave my daughter my memory card to run it without my knowledge. :(

If you are purchasing for a child, it's worthwhile since it's not expensive so you don't have to worry about them breaking something that cost an arm and a leg. Although, make sure you have a memory card available to use right from the get go.

Did not work when SD was inserted, tried several different cards. product was very flimsy, but price was good so that was expected. Disappointed it did not work.

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LOVE IT, its small, light, no need to search USB cable, its very usefull and for a very good price

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Panasonic VDR-D300 3.1MP 3CCD DVD Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom

The Panasonic VDR-D300 "Palmcorder" is a compact 3CCD camcorder that records videos to mini DVDs: 3" (8 cm) DVD-RAM, DVD-RW and DVD-R. (Note that it cannot use the "plus" version of DVD+R/RW.) Thanks to the three separate 1/6" CCD image sensors inside, it shoots broadcast-quality videos and turns in decent low-light performance. It also doubles as a 3.1MP digital camera, but its forte definitely lies in shooting video.

5/4/06 UPDATE: before going any further, let me offer a bit of a "warning." The fundamental differences between DVD camcorders and tape (miniDV) camcorders are two: 1) DVDs let you access a scene quickly and easily, while tapes have much faster start-up times (assuming you are already at the point where you can record or play); 2)DVD camcorders like the VDR-D300 use MPEG4 compression whereas miniDV camcorders compress much less. For most scenes you won't notice a difference. In fact you can probably shoot a good professional-looking movie on the VDR-D300. Just be aware that the MPEG4 can very occasionally raises the ugly head of heavy compression for certain shooting conditions. The "warning" concerns the DVD media: if you use DVD-RW, which is more common and cheaper than Panasonic's DVD-RAM, be prepared for up to 5 minutes of formatting time and up to 10 minutes in finalization time (both have to be done with the AC adapter attached, not from battery). In a nutshell, if you plan to do some editing, use DVD-RAM. If you plan to just shoot and watch (like me), use DVD-R or DVD-RW in Video mode (both require finalization but can be played back on almost all DVD players). I just wanted to point out the long formatting and finalization times as the biggest caveat with DVD camcorders, including the DVR-D300.

Update2: if you buy this between now and 7/31, you can get a free camcorder bag and 3 DVD-R blanks from Panasonic by mail. Check their website for the PDF rebate form.

Before offering my take on the VDR-D300, let me tell you why I chose it. My story might be of some help in your own decision making.

First, I had always wanted a 3CCD camcorder of my own. Most consumer camcorders on the market have one image sensor inside. The image sensor is like the eye of the camcorder. The VDR-D300 has not one, but three CCD image sensors, each designed to process a specific color: red, green or blue. In fact, all professional video camcorders -like the ones used to shoot things on TV (news, dramas, etc.) -use the 3CCD design to better capture color. Together with proper white-balance calibration and judicious choice of lens, you get eye-pleasing colors and sharpness not found in most consumer camcorders, which tend to give dull, bland, fuzzy video images.

Second, I was a little fed up with using tapes for video recording. You know the drill: you buy a tape-based camcorder, then you find out it's a pain to dub it to a VHS or a DVD, or to transfer it to a computer, so you end up using the camcorder like one or two times a year. Like many folks I have been using the video function of my digital camera a lot and left my Sony DCR-PC5 camcorder behind in the closet. My Fujifilm F10 digital camera shoots pretty good video for a camera, but for important occasions, I still want a real camcorder. (Cameras are designed for still images whereas camcorders are designed for moving pictures. For now and the foreseeable future, there's no perfect hybrid camera that does both very well.) DVD-recording has always appealed to me because I could just pop in a recordable/rewritable DVD, shoot some footage, and then play it back, without all the fussing involved with tape recording. I played with my friends' DVD camcorders (Panasonic and Sony) and really liked this "new" way of shooting videos. I waited until someone released a camcorder that combined DVD recording and the 3-chip design. Panasonic finally did, and I bought.

Oh, when I was contemplating the purchase I also considered Sony's HD (high-def) camcorder, which records high-def video on MiniDV tapes. In the end, budget constraint (that one is $1500, a lot of dough for a poor guy like myself), compatibility concerns (i.e., impossible to burn HD video to DVD, not many friends having HDTV) and also the fact that I have been totally let down by the subjective quality of HDTV content on TV convinced me to stick with the standard NTSC resolution. My priority was to get a camcorder that shoots great colors and clarity, not one that gives the highest resolution. It's the same thing with buying a digital camera: higher number of megapixels doesn't necessarily mean a better picture; the camera's image sensor is just as important, if not more.

OK, let's take a look at the VDR-D300 itself. (A slightly cheaper model, VDR-D250, also sports the 3CCD design and records to DVDs. It has slightly lower resolution and lacks a built-in flash and a few other features.)

Whenever you evaluate a camcorder, video image quality should account for 75-80% of the composite score, because you buy a camcorder to shoot videos! Here, the D300 shines, thanks to its 3CCD design. Video quality is especially excellent when there is a lot of light. It's difficult to describe in words, but let me just say that with this camcorder, you can shoot video that looks almost like the professional stuff you see on TV: clear pictures, pleasing colors, smooth motions. Even though the D300 shoots at the same resolution as other NTSC (standard defintion TV) camcorders, its video images are very noticeably clearer and look sharper. Many consumer camcorders exhibit bleeding reds, but the D300 is largely free from this defect. I would like to point out that when I say "professional-quality eye-pleasing" colors, I don't mean high-saturation colors. Most people like warm, high-saturation colors that "jump out" of the screen. The D300's colors are rather muted when set to auto white balance. If you want to get warm colors, you'll need to manually set the white balance to achieve this effect. I personally use WarmCards from VortexMedia.com.

Indoors, without professional-grade lighting rigs, the D300 turns in good performance. Definitely better than 1CCD camcorders (except probably Sony's HD camcorders), but you'll get most of the 3CCD prowess if you provide enough lighting. After all, photography and videography is 99% about lighting. Not just how much light, but the angle of light, the temperature of light (i.e., white balance), and the quality of light (i.e., diffused or concentrated). Having a 3CCD camcorder like the D300 helps improve your home video images tremendously, but if you want your video to look close to being professional, you need professional lighting techniques. For example, when shooting indoors, use a video light. You can buy a cheap one and just mount it on top of the D300 (it has a cold shoe) and turn on the video light manually. Also use the WarmCards I mentioned earlier to achieve the white balance you desire.

The D300 records videos in three quality settings: XP, SP and LP. XP here means the best quality. (On some video equipment XP means eXtended Play, which equals the least quality, but not here.) You can fit about 18 minutes of video on one side of the DVD media (DVD-RAM, DVD-RW or DVD-R). SP, or Standard Play, gives you 30 minutes, but the quality is noticeably inferior. I'd never use LP (Long Play), because video quality there is worse than VHS. The battery that comes in the package lasts well over an hour of shooting with LCD on (you can also use the viewfinder only to conserve power). You can buy an extended battery that doubles the battery life.

The D300 has some nifty features not found in other brands. One truly unique feature is something called AGS (auto ground-directional standby). This mysterious-sounding function automatically pauses recording when it detects the camera titled straight up or down. This is most useful when you (like I) often forget to stop the recording and end up shooting a lot of junk footage of the ground, shoes, etc. Another nice feature is optical image stabilization, which utilizes a set of small lenses to compensate for handshakes. In theory, optical image stabilization is better than the electronic type (found in Sony's products); in practice, the D300 seems to do a good job of minimizing, but not completely eliminating, handshakes.

The D300 can double as a 3.1MP digital camera, but this feature is nothing to write home about. Still image quality is just okay; I defintitely prefer to use my Nikon D70 or Fujifilm F10 for photography anytime, anywhere. Pictures are recorded on an SD or mini SD card (neither included). BTW, unlike with Sony's recent offerings, you cannot record video to the SD card or capture pictures on the DVD. It doesn't matter to me at all, since I would have wanted to keep video clips and still pictures separate anyway. (You can insert a still image captured on the SD card into your video during editing.)

Video editing can be done in camera, or on a computer. Both Windows and Macintosh are supported, but you definitely get more functions if you use a Windows PC. In fact, Mac users will be disappointed to know that the things they can't do with Panasonic's software, they can't do at all (i.e., no other software is compatible). In the end, it's worth keeping in mind that you buy a DVD camcorder really for its convenience; in my case, for example, I hate editing, so I'm just going to shoot, delete bad scenes, and finalize; no editing whatsoever. If you are an editing type, a miniDV camcorder will be better as all the major brands (Canon, Hitachi, JVC, Panasonic, Sony) offer comprehensive editing support for both Windows and Macintosh.

Conclusion: The Panasonic VDR-D300 (along with its lesser sibling, the D250) is the first DVD camcorder that offers the 3CCD design. Having three separate image sensors for the different primary colors improves image quality tremendously. Recording to a DVD provides the videographer lots of convenience, at the expense of having fewer editing options available than with miniDV tapes. If you want the convenience of shoot-and-watch and want broadcast-quality video, the D300 is absolutely worth its price tag.

I cannot fit everything I have to say here on Amazon, but you can check my blog for more comments and you can also e-mail me if you have any questions about this camcorder. Check my profile for contact info.

One final note: I've seen this model advertised for much less than Amazon's price on other websites. Those websites, all run out of Brooklyn, NY, are all masters at the bait-n-switch game. I know because I'm from Brooklyn and was neighbors with these irresponsible stores. Do not believe the high ratings these sites seem to have on shopping sites; if you search on the web you'll find a lot of unhappy customers who never received what they had ordered. Go with a reputable seller like Amazon or Best Buy or Circuit City. Good luck!

I reviewed many DVD camcorders over a 4-5 month period and feel this was the best choice. I almost purchased the Sony DVD405, but color was one of the first priorities on my list of wants with this new camcorder. Although the Sony has a better chip, the fact is that the Panasonic, with 3 chips, according to many reviews I had read had better color. The ease of use is nice also. Finalizing DVD's takes only a few minutes and not really a big deal, my only issue so far is the fade control which requires the operator to select it via the joystick control each time you want to use it. Selecting this control while recording requires a steady hand so that the camera does not shake. None the less, it puts my eleven year old, 8mm camcorder to shame. Love taking videos again.

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This is my first DVD camcorder and I absolutely love it! It's also my first 3-chip video camcorder. The image quality is just really good, like the other guys said. The machine is also apiece of cake to use. I e-mailed "gadgester" and he recommended TDK 8.cm dvd-r blanks from amazon, so I bought them and now I just pop one in and go! No formatting needed. Finalization in the camcorder is needed to make the dvd-r compatable with my Sony dvd player at home as well as my Thinkpad.

One gotcha to look out for is the slow start-up times, from power off to on. It takes anywhere between 5 and 10 seconds for the camcorder to be ready to record, after you insert yoru dvd-r. If you use dvd-rw, the manual says it might take up to 20 seconds! Other than that, I have no problems with the camcorder. It's high quality, and I just love the conveneince as well as image quality.

Read Best Reviews of Panasonic VDR-D300 3.1MP 3CCD DVD Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Here

I have been using mine for about 2 months now. The picture quality is very good. I purchased a Sima light as an add on. It enhances the pictures even better. The still pictures are amazing too. I was trying to decide between Sony and this one. Finally decided on this one because of the picture quality.

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The picture quality is exceptional and it is very easy to use. So much nicer than punching the screen for menus like the Sony 405. Who wants to worry about finger prints and scratches all over the screen with those touch screens? It is also priced better than the Sony 405. We researched these cameras a lot before settling on the Panasonic, with picture quality being our #1 objective. We are more than pleased with our purchase!!

DNT 8ch 8 Channel H.264 Standalone Surveillance CCTV DVR Digital Video Recorder with 8 Color Day Ni

Purchased unit and received within a few days, so bravo on fast shipping. Set up was easy, and have been delayed by running POC serpentine coax cables to locations for cameras rather than cables shipped, so soldering connectors and putting on BNC ends. We have one location where I will use the supplied cables since close to DVR location. So far so good, with only four cameras connected. Haven't hooked into Intranet yet. Easy GUI interface. We will see how long it lasts. Some DVRs have pooped out within 12-months in some of our implementations. Has only been installed a couple weeks at present. All seems fine though and would probably get another as needed. Pretty much an acceptable/standard unit at a good price.

check around and this was a great price for the money its easy to use. i would recommend this item to all

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BONUS PACK! NBOX V3 Full HD 1080P Multimedia Digital TV Media player

We hunted for such a device for several months trying to decide which to get, we finally settled on the NBOX v3. The box is simple, light weight and easy to use, for the most part plug and play.

Upon getting the device we took it out, read through the short and informative manual and went about hooking up some things to test it. We tested AVI, MKV and MPG movies, all worked flawlessly except for one hiccup where it went out of sync on the audio when we left it paused overnight.

The Layout is simple and easy to use, if you can scroll through and choose whether you want a movie, music, file, etc...then you can use this.

Only one concern is the remote, it feels like it's unresponsive sometimes, and I'm not entirely sure it's going to last as long as the device itself is, although I have found that if I sit straight across from the NBOX that I can turn on the device and go through the buttons quite easily, so maybe it's just the angles. Although it is probably best to turn on your movie or whatever and then put the remote up where it won't get sat on or something get put on it so that it will be just fine.

I've now recommended this device to several people, it plays everything I have thrown at it, it went to work smoothly and is used on a regular basis, the family loved it this week.

A side note about the review that said it wouldn't work with 2.5" external drives, I found this to be true at first but I've found since then it isn't true for me. I am currently using an old laptop hard drive with an external enclosure, it won't work with a long USB cord but will with a really short one. I don't know why, but with a short USB cord it works, with the long one it won't. So you might test that see if that holds true with yours.

I bought this in an effort to reduce my DVD collection, and it totally does :-)

This is super easy to use, works right off the bat, and is overall well worth the money!

I plugged in a 2TB external hard drive with about 120 movies on it and it all works well. Overall, I am happy and am considering getting another one for another part of my house...

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I found myself needing some kind of device to play my numerous digital files. This fits the bill. NBOX offers other models with affordable pricing options. I went for the V3 model with its many outputs to display on any TV. The HDMI has fantastic picture qualiy on my big screen. The SPDIF optical audio output has great audio for movies. The benefit of its small size makes it much easier than always having to hookup your laptop to view various files. Photos, video, audio even text files display big and bright. I convert all my .FLV files to .WMA compatable files to play smoothly on this device. Includes contact info and website link for after the sale service if needed. Amazon product description is accurate.

Overall an affordable quality solution to playing digital downloads on your TV.

Read Best Reviews of BONUS PACK! NBOX V3 Full HD 1080P Multimedia Digital TV Media player Here

I've had the NBOX HD 1080P Media Player since October 18, 2011 12:33:14 PM. So it's a been a good month since I've started using it (I use it pretty much every day too). Yes, I read ALL of the reviews on Amazon before I purchased. Yes, I saw that some people hated this (is there anything on Amazon that gets 100% positive reviews? Okay maybe, but some of the negative reviews for this player are unjustified.) So after thinking about buying this for a week, I went ahead and got it because the seller claims to give you a full reimbursement if you are not satisfied. First, I'll go into the Pros and then the Cons.

What's Good?

*Plays a Variety of Files:

Honestly, I usually watch MKV, AVI and MP4 video files. They have all played flawlessly except for a few of the larger MKV files (I'll get into it later). It does say that it plays a number of other files, but I have yet to use those file types so I can't comment on them.

*Good Value:

For $60 you won't find a better HD Media Player on the market. The Western Digital Live Plus is a good player too for a little more. Anyways, for only $60, you will save a lot of money in the end and won't have to hassle with all the DVDs you may or may not have. I like to get the most out of my money with everything I buy and I don't like wasting money. This player can't be beat at it's price range.

*USB or SD/MMC:

The USB works great! I've been using my 320GB Verbatim portable hard drive and have had no problems with it at all. Although some of the reviews say that a portable hard drive without it's own external power source cannot be powered by the NBOX, mines has worked without any problems. However, this may vary for everyone because I can't comment on other hard drive brands or memory capacities. As for the SD/MMC, I haven't used that slot yet so I can't comment on it working good or not working.

*HDMI, AV Composite/Component:

The NBOX has your typical red, yellow, white, red (not a mistake), blue, green plugs. But my TV has HDMI so it's the only one I use. The picture quality has been amazing. The large MKV files (8GB, 14GB) look just like Blu-ray quality. The AVI and MP4 files have been great as well. However, although most people should know this, the quality of your video depends on a number of things such as original conversion. (You can't expect an AVI file of 100MB to be as good as a 500MB file of the same video and length. Basically, the smaller you shrink the file size, the lesser quality you will get.)

*Remote:

The remote has a lot of useful buttons such as Play, Pause, Stop, Rewind, Fast Forward, Zoom, Volume, Subtitle, Language, Music, Photo, Text, Ratio, etc. The Western Digital player doesn't have all of these buttons at your fingertips. So this is a real convenience for anyone who likes to be able to do what they want when they want while using the NBOX.

*Resume Function:

The NBOX allows you to start a video file from where you last stopped it. So for example, you are watching a 3-hour movie, but had to stop at the half way point and go do something. You come back three days later and go back to the same file, the NBOX will ask you if you want to Resume Playback "Yes" or "No". I think this is one of the best features because I can watch a bunch of different files and if I don't finish any of them, I can always go back to them. Now I don't know how many files you can playback from, but it has worked for up to at least 10 different files for me (I was trying to find which episode I left off on). And every file I checked, it asked me if I wanted to resume playback. Oh yeah, and you don't have to leave your player plugged in or turned on or in sleep mode, AND you don't have to leave your portable hard drive plugged in either, I've unplugged the player from the outlet and hard drive, and come back to every video file without any problems. In addition, I haven't had any problem using the remote from 7 feet away and the sensor works fine for me.

*Power Button On/Off:

Wow! So many electronics, even in this day and age, fail to have an on/off power button. The NBOX has it! There is a white button in the back of the player that shuts off the main power to it. If you press this button the player will light up the Green LED in front and it will be completely on in the Main Menu screen. If you press it to turn it off, it will go completely off, meaning no Red LED in front, no sleep mode, save some energy. The Power button on the remote only shuts the player down and leaves it on sleep mode (same as with your TV, DVD player or PS3, not to be confused with a computer's sleep mode). As a safety measure, I recommend turning the power off with the remote before pressing the white button in the back of the player (not that I have done this, but I mean, why risk it?)

What's Bad?

*Remote:

Yes, it has good features, but it can also be quite clunky. The buttons are small for me (no I don't have an NFL or NBA player's palm size). This can be a nuisance to some people, and although it doesn't bother me much, just a fair warning to those with big hands I suppose. But the buttons are spaced out so that's a plus. Now some people have complained about the player not being able to catch the remote signal. After a quick search I found a youtube video explaining that some of the older NBOXs had an engineering error and the sensor on the player was slightly lower than the hole that it is supposed to be aligned to. However, I have the Version 3 and have not encountered this problem. You might press the Up or Down arrows buttons to scroll through your files, and it might not move on screen right away. If you get antsy and press it more than once, it will move MORE THAN ONCE when it stops lagging. So yes, the remote is a big part of the negative for the NBOX. If they could fix the remote, they would eliminate probably most, if not all, of their bad reviews. My solution would be to program a universal remote to control the NBOX, however, I do not know if you can do that. Does anyone know?

*Slow Forward:

I know what you're thinking, isn't it supposed to be Fast Forward? Anyways, the NBOX only allows you to "Fast" Forward up to 16x. That can be pretty slow compared to 32x that other players (media players, DVD/Blu-ray, game consoles) may have. Say you were watching some movie or show at your friend's house, didn't finish it and you came home and wanted to jump to that scene (or you just want to jump to a scene), well you are going to wait a little bit to reach that action or love scene. However, does this happen much? Probably not. Most likely you would have started the movie from the comfort of your own home, and if you need to pick up where you left off, that's where the aforementioned "Resume Function" comes in. So this Slow Forward is a minor inconvenience at best. However, you can't skip scenes on the NBOX. Unless the file itself is divided up into scenes, the NBOX will NOT randomly jump you ahead by a couple minutes, if you press the NEXT button it will jump you to the next file in that folder, if you press the PREVIOUS button, it will jump you to the beginning of the current file or to the previous file in the folder.

*Firmware?:

Some players allow you to update the firmware via Internet or Wi-Fi. The NBOX does not. My theory is that whenever they have a "NEW" version, it will be sold as a "NEW" box (does this remind you of Street Fighter 4?). It would be nice if they updated their codecs and whatnot, just so we could have an up-to-date player without having to show up another $60 or more.

*Streaming?:

As far as I know the NBOX has no internet capabilities and thus, no streaming of Hulu, Netflix, or any other program you may use. This really isn't too much of a negative for me because I have a computer and PS3 that can easily do all my streaming for me. However, some people may not have a computer or PS3 and the NBOX may be their one-stop entertainment player. So this "Negative" was for them to know and be aware of before purchasing a media player.

*Not all files will flow flawlessly:

I have watched different video file types of different sizes. I have had one problem, yes 1. This applies to a 14GB MKV file. While watching this file, it constantly had lag. No it was not an action movie with special effects every other scene. It was, in fact, a drama/love story, and the most action there was, was a guy running away from a "bureau" with his girlfriend (can you guess the name of this movie?) Anyways, I also watched a 14GB MKV file of an ACTION MOVIE with computer special effects almost every scene (let's say this guy went into the computer world and found his dad after like 20 something years), and there was NO lag! I thought this was ridiculous, the love story had all the lag in the world, but the action movie had no lag! So this goes to show that: it really all depends on the original conversion of the file whether it lags or not, some movies will lag and some won't no matter what the movie is. However, you can't blame the NBOX for the lag (at least not in my case).

So here you are about 5 minutes later, tired from reading my long and stale review (it took me over an hour to write it thank you very much), and now you are wondering if you should, in fact, buy this media player? I had the same question in my mind when I was searching for an HD 1080p Media Player on Amazon. After reading several reviews on several media players, I finally settled on the NBOX after reading ALL of it's reviews. I knew of the problems some of the customers/reviewers were having, but I took a risk (it's a risk if you buy any product you've never owned before). And I can honestly say that I like the NBOX a lot. Except for the few quirks here and there, I use it every single day now to watch all my videos from TV shows to movies. Do I even watch regular TV anymore? Not except for NFL on Sundays, Animation Domination on FOX, and House. So if you are on the fence, didn't climb the fence yet or fell over the fence about this player, I would recommend it. I've been pretty happy with it and I don't feel like I've wasted $59.99. In fact, you will save tons of money if you buy and use this on a consistent basis (even once or twice a week I imagine). If not, you're free to go buy a more expensive media player and switch your car insurance to the one favored by reptiles to save 15% or more.

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I bought this specifically for the H.264 playback capability. It has no such

capability in any real sense. The video freezes and frames stutter and sound is

out of sync. The first files i tried were high@L3.0 but i eventually backed down

to Simple@L1 and still no improvement. I re encoded to match the frame sizes exactly

and still no useful picture.

The Divx does seem to work well and i like the resume feature that remembers where you

left off. The manual included DOES state that the USB port will not power a portable

hard drive that gets its power from USB.

I think quite a few of these reviews here are planted. I am surprised at this and will

be much more careful about trusting the reviews in the future.

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