Showing posts with label sanyo digital recorder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sanyo digital recorder. Show all posts

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Wasabi Power AC Adapter for Sony Handycam DCR-HC20, DCR-HC21, DCR-HC26, DCR-HC28 Series

Wasabi Power AC Adapter for Sony Handycam DCR-HC20, DCR-HC21, DCR-HC26, DCR-HC28 SeriesThe prongs on the product will not fit in any North American outlet I've ever seen. They are shaped exactly like the plastic thing you put in an outlet to keep babies out. The plug just falls out of the socket.

Only get this product if your AC adapter is faulty but you still have the electrical cords from Sony.

This is not a Sony product (it doesn't claim to be) and it's made in China. Buyer beware.

Still cheaper to get this ordered than to get Sony to fix it.

Review a power cord? Well it worked for the camera I purchased it for, and a year later is still doing the job! Would purchase from this company again.

Buy Wasabi Power AC Adapter for Sony Handycam DCR-HC20, DCR-HC21, DCR-HC26, DCR-HC28 Series Now

Thank goodness I found this. The price at Best Buy was waaaay more, and this works perfectly.

Read Best Reviews of Wasabi Power AC Adapter for Sony Handycam DCR-HC20, DCR-HC21, DCR-HC26, DCR-HC28 Series Here

This item was the perfectbreplacement for he lost charger for my video camera. It arrived on time an in great shape.

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I lost all my accessories for my Sony Handycam DCR-HC20, so I needed replacements. The Wasabi Power Adapter works fine as a replacement unit, although the materials feel a little cheap. I haven't noticed any flaws so far.

Friday, October 31, 2014

Swann SW344-DWD-US000 ADW-400 Digital Guardian Camera and Recorder (Gray)

Swann SW344-DWD-US000 ADW-400 Digital Guardian Camera and RecorderDo not think the system will over write previous video. Fills the SD chip and quits. half a dozen calls to SWANN and they are clueless. The motion detection is a joke. Save your money and buy a real security camera system.

Too difficult to set up outside your house. For example, to mount this camera outside my front door I would have to drill through the house, find a compatible cord that long, then plug into a convenient(sarcasm)outlet and try and hide the cord. Problem two is it turns off with a power outage and doesn't turn back on by itself. Another problem is the motion detector is too sensitive. It records and records till it fills up the memory card. It's time consuming to sift through a mere hour of memory. I want to add that you can supposedly set the program to erase earlier recordings once the memory card becomes full, but this is not working, so my little card fills up in a matter of an hour. I don't dare buy a bigger card.

A couple of these problems are fixable, but the motion detector

being too sensitive and the system not erasing earlier recordings when full is a deal breaker! I might try and adjust the camera to look at a stationary part of my deck out back, but the field of view might be limited. Seriously though a moth flies by and its on camera! Too sensitive! buy a better system that doesn't have these flaws!

Buy Swann SW344-DWD-US000 ADW-400 Digital Guardian Camera and Recorder (Gray) Now

Set up this system and tested it several times connected to a video display (TV).

It worked, and we could see clearly persons in the camera view even in dim light.

However, with the "Arm" button always glowing red on the receiver, it was hard to know whether the system was "armed" or not! Next texted the system NOT hooked to

a video device. Was unable to read the tested results either from the receiver hooked up to a TV or by reading from my computer (even downloaded software as SWANN recommended). My thought was that should we need to read the SD if we had a breakin, someone surely would be able to read the SD. What happened next, however,

did not occur to us...we left for a 2 week trip the day before hurricane Irene arrived in our area. The electric went out...no big deal, we have a large, whole-house automatic generator that kicks on in 15 seconds. What we forgot was that the

SWANN "security" system would have to be physically turned on again and armed.

Bottom line I am ready to return this system for something we can rely on when we're not home!!! Two calls to SWANN did not help in being able to read the

SanDisk Ultra 32GB card. Having just returned from vacation, I have not yet called SWANN for their comments.

Read Best Reviews of Swann SW344-DWD-US000 ADW-400 Digital Guardian Camera and Recorder (Gray) Here

This camera system would be be decent if the motion detector was not so sensitive. I called tech suppport and they said there is no way to adjust it. It fills up the SD card in less than 1 day. Not so good if you are gone for 1 week and want too see what happenned around the house when you get home.

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I have had mine two and a half stories up on my house for almost two years. It still works great BUT, it is slowly starting to get moister leaks in the front where the cam is and the inferred lights that really don't see anything unless you have flood lights to back it up at night. The moister leaks have shorted out the inferred lights for night vision but the cam is still going, for how long I don't know. I will say it has been through some very heavy and intense rain storms along with high winds. I would rather say moister leaking into front of cam when it rains for days.

Otherwise it is ok. I bought a second cam only to find out you can only record with one cam at a time to an SD card. You can have from four cams but after you have more than one cam online you can't record all of them, ONLY ONE CAM!!!

Do yourself a favor, spend another two or three hundred bucks and buy a non wireless cam that is not plastic. YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!

This cam has always given a clear picture, the mic is for crap unless your standing under it with a megaphone. Well actually the mic picks up car engines almost three blocks away coming down the road. After two years i can tell a ford, toyota, chevy coming before the cam see's it! Big deal!

It works but if I where you, I would spend more money.

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Wednesday, October 8, 2014

JVC FS-7000 Executive MicroSystem

JVC FS-7000  Executive MicroSystem
  • Compact size
  • Line-level subwoofer output
  • 3-mode gain control
  • Clock-timer
  • Compu Play

Recently I purchased the JVC FS-V5 for the bedroom, and now I splurged on this one for my home office. I admit I prefer the styling of this unit over the FS-V5, and the wooden speaker boxes with quality speaker cable are very worthwhile.

The sound is fantastic it is quite amazing to hear what those tiny speakers can do. The sound compares very well with my main audio system.

However, the display is not as well designed as that of the FS-V5. In addition, the clock irritates me: the display settings are NOT remembered, so each time you turn the unit on or off, your preferred settings are reset. For example, suppose you prefer only the analogue clock face when the unit is on. Turn the unit off, and then on again, and the radio frequency or cd track information is back.

Another problem is the loudness of the cd transport system both the spinning of the cd, and the movement of the optical head is noisy. Since I tend to play my music relatively loud, it does not bug me, but the noise is definitely audible during the quiet between tracks. I would suggest that someone who prefers their music at low volume had better use headphones or buy something else (like the JVC FS-V5, whose transport is much quieter).

All in all, it does everything I want it to do, in style, and I am certainly happy with my purchase.

Buy JVC FS-7000 Executive MicroSystem Now

After owning the FS7000 for a couple of months, here are my conclusions that I hope will aid in your purchasing decision:

CONS: 1. Unit gets VERY hot. 2. Luminescent clock is annoying in that it does not "remember" the last display option that you selected. Also, I do not like the orange-coloured display. Mine cannot be changed. 3. CD drive is a bit loud 4. Remote's infra-red beam range and range angle is not that great: I literally have to stand in front of the 7000 to make it work via remote. Off to the side? Forget about it. Maybe mine's defective. Brand new batteries make no difference 5. The unit is quite long. Dimensionally speaking, the width and height is tiny but the length, I had problems in my cabinet with all my cables attached. Most likely not a big deal for most. 6. Only one CD

PROS: 1. Very good sound quality/clarity. Very crisp mids and highs, but does lack low-end punch. Recently purchased a subwoofer to compliment the bass, and it makes an incredible difference. Don't be fooled by the FS8000, because for the difference in price between a 7000 and 8000, you can buy a better quality sub than one that is provided with the 8000. I would definately recommend a subwoofer to "complete" the sound. 2. Aesthetically pleasing: unit's champagne colour ,cherry-wood speakers and glass lid look more expensive than it really is 3. Coolness factor. Lets face it, as with PRO #2, it looks really cool 4. Separate BASS/TREBLE controls 5. SUB output 6. No built-in cassette deck. 7. Digital/optical out provides expandibility for MD 8. Reasonable price

In conclusion, I would recommend the FS7000 for anyone looking for a small/desktop/executive system with above average sound quality. People wanting to buy this unit must first consider what the intended use is and also where. Do not expect the unit to completely fill a large space but for small to mid-size rooms, it is fine. Don't forget to try it with a sub...you will truly be impressed. I was.

Read Best Reviews of JVC FS-7000 Executive MicroSystem Here

I first heard the FSseries from JVC in Florida and when birthday time came, so did an FS-2000. I immediately started a search for a suitable Sub-woofer to enhance the system. I tried a "Bass-bite" unit and was very pleased at how perfectly matched it was. Since then I have purchased several more sub's for computer's. The real plus is that JVC was on the "cutting edge" when they engineered the system with a sub-woofer output in the first place. Now you find several other brand names that are marketing the same thing with their name on it. What a neat form of flattery! The magnet structure of the speaker is as large as the mounting hole opening. As JVC has made a few changes in newer models such as the FS-7000, the basic features are maintained. The speaker has received such huge acceptance based on its performance that JVC is using it in their boom box line with unmatched performance from competitors. I have demo'd and highly recommended this unit to others for several years. I have found no other product that I would rather have invested in.

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I returned mine for a couple of reason: The transport makes too much noise, especially when I listen late at night (I don't want to hear the machine, just the music); and the alarm does not allow you to set volume, so unless you remember to listen at night at the level you want to wake up to (so much for the sleep function) it may be too lound or too quiet in the morning. I found the Sony CMT-ED1 to have better sound, and to be more intelligently designed, for less money.

My everyday beside alarm for 20+ years. Mine might be the earlier FS-5000 but clearly it's the same system. Wakes me to my radio station unfailingly. Excellent sound quality particularly for classical and similar music. I'm finally going to look for a replacement because at long last the display is starting to fade out, and the lack of USB/iPod connections (not needed in 1992!) is starting to pinch. JVC = Quality!

eForCity 2 Pk 6 Foot Digital Audio Optical Toslink Cable 6ft

eForCity 2 Pk 6 Foot Digital Audio Optical Toslink Cable 6ftthey work perfectly fine! i bought 2 sets of two packs and they are worth buying if you have a surround sound! :)

Awsome Product!! Higly Recommended!! Was so happy I finally got to use the Toslink from my Samsung TV to my 5.1 Surround Sound System that is actually about 5 years old(a Pioneer Surround System I bought many years ago and has the "Wireless Rear Speakers" so no running wires across the room to hook up.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2014

iriver E100 4 GB Multimedia Player (Brown)

iriver E100 4 GB Multimedia Player
  • MicroSD Slot
  • Built In Stereo Speaker
  • Line-In recording
  • FM Radio with recording
  • Voice recording
  • 2.4-inch LCD display
  • Line-In recording; FM Radio with recording

Let me start this review by saying that I'm an above average user who has used a plethora of media players out there, so my reference point maybe a little different from yours.

This is a little device (See posted photo in user images) similar to the size of a credit card. It comes in many colors, so choice of color should not be a problem. I bought the black one, which is made in a matte plastic, which I am very satisfied with. Leaves fingerprints on the black surface, but doesn't really standout as the unit is not polished to a high gloss. The player is also extremely light, much lighter than any of the competitors (iPod Nano, Sandisk Sansa). This lightness maybe preferred by many users, but I find it too light (Forgetting its with you, and almost loaded it into the washing machine; also feels a bit cheap because of its weight).

I primarily bought this device for its built in speaker, to listen to audio books. Unfortunately, the speaker has quite poor volume (Nothing compared to the competing Samsung S5 or K5). But the iriver is a genius with file formats, and plays many formats, surprisingly plays 700mb, video files encoded with xvid (video) and mp3 (audio) quite smoothly. In addition to this it play Windows Media Audio / Video, Avi's (Xvid Compressed), Mp3's, BMP's, JPG's, PNG's, Text and more. It also has a full range FM tuner that allows 20 presets, which is a great feature. One of the best features the E100 has is the fact that it can record FM, Voice, and Line in Directly to its internal memory, and saves it in WMA format. Using a headset I recorded a 1 hour audio lecture of unmatched quality, and later edited on the PC for the sections I wanted out.

There are many reviews that oppose the navigational buttons on the E100 (Left and right buttons control settings and back to main menu functions, while up and down control the track / video / photo forward or backward). Though this is unorthodox the navigational "D" menu took me a day to master, and can be controlled quite easily after this initial learning. It is not at all complicated, though menus require a lot of clicks left and right to get what you are trying to do.

The expandable memory slot is an advantage and a easy way to upgrade this player to double its capacity via cheap micro sd cards. The problem here is that files on the micro sd are not read in the database for browsing by track, artist, album etc, but has to be accessed rather crudely through a file manager. I have used a 4gb micro sd with no problems. Keep this memory for adding lengthy movies, where you may store 5 6 full length movies that are easy to access on this media. The player can be used as a portable hard drive (Obviously). Battery life was quite good, though the bad news is that this player comes with no wall charger and must be charged via a PC or Mac's USB port (Powered of course). I use my iPhone's charger to charge this device (USB Charger with 5 volts output with 1 Amp total output).

The audio quality on the headphones is quite decent, but the speaker is definitely weak and unpronounced. Only listening to the device on full volume in a dead silent room gives you a semi decent listening experience. The good thing here is that many problems have been fixed via firmware upgrades provided by iriver, which I have got 3 times already since purchase in April. Hopefully they will address the speaker volume in the next update. One of the worse features of the device is the fact that the screen is terrible. It is sufficient for mp3 menu options, but falls far short for photo and video options. When in portrait mode the screen is clear, but when used in landscape mode (For photos and videos) the screen gets inadvertently polarized and produces poor and unclear photos.

The iriver e100 is a decent media player, but by no means the best. It has good features and poor ones as well. It could have been a great media player had there not been so many mistakes. Yet I believe that many entry level media player buyers will enjoy this player, as well as some advanced users (Due to advanced recording functions / file support), though the large chunk of the middle spectrum will be unhappy with the many quirks. I have used better players and worse ones as well. The iPod nano is still a heavy weight in its class, though for users looking to break away from the iPod and iTunes bundle, and jazz up their player with FM, Recording, Direct MP3, Photo, Text and Video and a speaker at a lower price than the iPod, the iriver makes sense. This player is a jack of all trades, but master of none.

Pros:

Color Options

Lightweight

Multiple Files Supported

FM Tuner

Frequent Firmware Upgrades

Integrated Speaker

Line In / Mic In / FM Recording

Micro SD Expandable

Direct Copy without conversions

Cons:

Plastic Body

Poor Screen

Speaker Volume

No Charger Provided (USB Charging Only)

Micro SD Browsing Complexity

Buy iriver E100 4 GB Multimedia Player (Brown) Now

I got this player because I wanted a one I could take out to the woods with my me, plug in a decent microphone and record acoustic guitar songs. This player works great. What the specs don't say is that the line in is stereo not just mono, so you can use nice stereo mics, so its better than I thought. Also the recording quality is really quite good through the line-in. Its comparable to the line-in on my macbook.

Beyond that, its a decent player. The battery life is good, the sound quality is fine (a little worse than my ipod but WAY better than my $20 player) The headphones are okay, the video is watchable. Its a little slower getting around than my ipod, it lags a little but it really doesn't bother me much.

One thing you should know is that you need access to a Windows computer when you first get it to configure the player and install the latest firmware, and also to put movies on it. After that, you change its settings so it can communicate with Linux or your Mac, which it does fine after the changes have been made.

The only disappointment was with the Micro SD expansion. I have not found a way to record directly to it, and it freezes on startup if it is inside, so you can only insert it once its on. Also it doesn't integrate with the music library, so unless you intend to watch movies/listen to long audiobooks from the Micro SD card, just skip the expansion card.

However because of the quality stereo line in recording, I give it 5 stars.

Read Best Reviews of iriver E100 4 GB Multimedia Player (Brown) Here

The iRiver iFP-899 has been an indispensable companion for recording college lectures and meetings. I was looking forward to trying the new E100 because of the larger storage size and display screen. Unfortunately, the E100 is a major disappointment. Numerous web sites detail the poor sound quality, slightly undersized enter button, and other problems. Let me focus on a few seldom discussed issues.

Many people report sporadically having the iRiver Plus 3 software not recognizing the E100. The dust cap on the E100's USB connector can interfere with fully inserting the USB cable connector by catching on the dust cap. Should this occur, the E100 will display Power & Play, and Power Only which makes you think everything is OK when, in fact, the iRiver Plus 3 has not actually recognized the E100. If you fully insert the connector without catching it on the dust cover, the E100 will display Power & Data, Power & Play, and Power Only the iRiver Plus 3 will now recognize the E100

For the last five days, the iRiver Tech Support at 562-758-6393 has not returned my calls. They have not replied to my email. By-the-way, the iRiver Technical Support is outsourced to a third party company.

The iFP-899 has an Automatic Gain Control (AGC) setting for recording which does not appear in the E100 settings. When I recorded a talk with the E100, the sound level was so weak that it was almost useless. I looked at the file with Sound Forge and found the signal was down in the mud. In contrast, the iFP-899 recorded the same talk without difficulty.

Having External Mic and Line-in recording are a major plus which separate iRiver products from others. However, what good are they if there is no incoming signal level indicator to let you know how much to adjust the line-in gain. Moreover, adjusting the line-in gain should not be buried in the settings but readily available while recording. The E100 needs AGC and Peak Limiting for the internal mic, external mic, and line-in to be effective. With such features, they could address a large market of users who would like to directly record from wireless microphone systems in lecture halls and churches. Let's hope they add such features.

The feature list of the E100 would have set the E100 above the competition. Unfortunately, the implementation was not up to par. Let's hope the next version puts iRivers back in the driver seat for producing dynamite products which outshine the competition.

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I bought this for my husband Albert for his birthday. He initially wanted the iPod, but it was too expensive, plus he loses tiny things. I asked him to search around to see if there was another item that could substitute. Reluctantly, he chose the iRiver E100 8 GB Multimedia Player and he has fallen in love with this product. I haven't heard a peep about him still wanting the iPod. He constantly has a new thing to tell me about how great it is for recording his music. He is a musician and he takes it with him to jazz jams as well as his regular gigs and it picks up everything and sounds crystal clear in the playback. He loves it, so I love it...

This is my review update.

I was looking for something which has line-in recording with mp3 play. Most of mp3 players don't have line-in recoding. So I bought Olympus WS-321M voice recorder(Linein recoding.) It works great for voice recording but not good for line-in music recording.

After long research, finally I decided Iriver E100 for Line-in recording and mp3 play. It works great much better than Olympus WS-321M voice recorder(Linein recoding). I returned WS-321M when I have Iriver E100.

Pro: with $99.99

1. Line-in recording you can hook up a headphone jack and record any sound from speaker specailly music or performance. recoring time is long enough. tape recorder has time limit 30min or 1 hour.

Ex, When I rocord music performance, I record sound and video seperately to make better. Sound recoding is done with Iriver E100 and edit with Video. It gives great result. Most music recorders are expensive.

2. External speaker many mp3 pleyers don't have. Volume is not very loud but good enough for a person hearing. sometime, I don't want to use a earphone. It gives an ear pain.

3. Small and lighter Video Play I like it. It converts and plays all my music videos and movies without a problem.

4. Radio, Voice recoding, 8GB Memory (ex, WS-321M has 1GB)

Con:

1. Plastic button and menu control. Could have better material than plastic button. Menu control is not familiar with other product users. But after 1 day use, It's O.K. for me

2. USB power should have regular A.C. adapter.

For me this is the best choice. With $99.99 I got what I want.

For me, money works I am happy now.

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 PCI TV Tuner with Remote Control (1045)

Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 PCI TV Tuner with Remote ControlI wanted to put a TV in my child's play room, which also had a computer. This device enables me to use the computer as a TV. It works great, my 4 year old has no problem using it.

I installed the device in my only PCI slot, hooked my cable coax into it, started my PC, and the drivers automatically loaded. I have XP SP2. The whole process took about 10 minutes. The software then starts and after about 5 minutes, goes through the cable channels to store the channels. Then, you are ready to go.

The unit is equipped with a remote. The remote points to an "eye". The eye is attached to a medium-sized small cord that is attached to the PCI card (under the coax cable). You are able to position the eye where you want it, although the cord the eye is on is not long. If you have a desktop sitting on the floor, it will barely reach the top of a computer desk. I taped the cord just under my keyboard shelf, so the remote needs to be pointed low.

The functionality of the software is great. You can change the channel with the computer or remote. There is a button to enable "full screen" on the computer, but not on the remote. The picture is excellent. The ability to pause live TV, or record ad-hoc or timed works extremely well.

This is a great product.

I've had the PVR150 for several months. Prospective buyers should be aware of the following:

-The card has audio problems. Audio levels, especially from the card's Line Input are too high, which results in clipped audio. And -get this -there is NO WAY TO ADJUST AUDIO INPUT LEVELS ON THIS CARD. Hauppauge has acknowledged the problem but so far (it's been 9 months) have been unable to fix it. In fact their "workaround" has been to install an audio limiter in their driver which automatically clips all audio at +6dB. A few months ago they were offering customers who complained about the issue free exchanges for PVR250's, which does not have the same problem as the 150. Not sure if Hauppauge is still offering this exchange.

-The card's video also has substantial problems. Particularly with some graphics adapters (most notably ATI), at normal contrast levels whites are extremely overexposed. If one compensates by decreasing the contrast so that whites are properly exposed, darker colors are completely washed out and most detail is lost. And Hauppauge's tech support so far has been worthless trying to address (or even acknowledge) the problem.

-Other problems exist, such as "judder" (constant skipping) when recording from VHS source and fast forwarding to a different part of the tape, or when the included capture software (WinTV2000) is paused or muted for too long. Hauppauge's "fix" is telling customers to revert from DirectX 9.0c to 9.0b, but as many of you know, this may require a complete reinstall of your operating system.

I believe this is a case where Conexant, the manufacturer of the PVR150's hardware MPEG encoder, brought a product to market well before it was ready. They attempted to combine the functions of separate video and audio controllers (which were in fact separate chips on the PVR250) into a single chip, with lower power draw and much lower manufacturing cost. In my opinion they fell short. I strongly advise against the PVR150.

Buy Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 PCI TV Tuner with Remote Control (1045) Now

I am not the first person to have this problem. What I received was in fact a WinTv-HVR-1600. Which is not at all the same as a WinTV-PVR-150 because it does not have Linux drivers. Then I had to go to the trouble of calling Haupauge to get them to switch it out. Had to pay shipping to send them the 150. More than a week went by before I was able to build my MythTV Box.

Read Best Reviews of Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 PCI TV Tuner with Remote Control (1045) Here

I bought this product and it works great. I had previously bought the ATI TV wonder pro remote control edition, and had to return it because they software wouldn't work right with my computer. I exchanged it for this one and am very glad I did. the WIN-TV PVR does everything I need it to do, and seems to have a little better quality than the ATI one, even though it still isnt nearly as good as TV quality. The software works great; however there are a few problems I have found:

1: I haven't figured out how to open the videos and make them work with programs other than the program they give you. I've tried changing the record format, but it doesn't change it. Therefore, I can't record a show while I'm watching one I've already recorded.

2:The TV guide is online and is a pain to try and get it to work with the program scheduler because it requires that you download a file and doesnt work all the time.

3: Sometimes when I am watching a recorded show, I will pause and then hit the Play button, but then it will reset the video back to the beginning, and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. It doesnt do it all the time though, and if it does it it's not the end of the world because I can just drag the slider back to where I was.

Other than these minor problems, the recorder works great, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a PVR.

Want Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 PCI TV Tuner with Remote Control (1045) Discount?

I tried to set up a PVR using my computer on the cheap on my less than state of the art computer (Pentium 4 2.2ghz). I experimented with a cheap tv card and half a dozen freeware software applications. I wish I could have the time back trying to set up all those lame products. The first thing that's essential that the cheaper tv cards don't have is an onboard chip to encode the video. Software encoding-how the cheap cards worktotally bogged down the computer. Tying together all the bits and pieces--cable box, remote, drivers, software can be a major headache. The Hauppauge card bundles a decent remote and ir emitter. This is a big plus. In light of that the $91 and free shipping made it a deal. This is only half the solution though as the software provided is not worthy of this fine hardware. I tried all the software out there for Windows-except for the expensive Windows media center-the only thing that works is Beyond TV. No other software is even close. The Beyond TV software is designed to work mainly with the Hauppage products. The IR emitter did not work satisfactorily for my Motorola cable box, but luckily I was able to control that with a serial cable connection. The TV picture is better than what I got directly from my cable box, though there is sometimes a slight, almost imperceptible, jerkiness. A Hauppage card, Beyond TV and your computer will bring you an excellent PVR experience. With a big Harddrive and a video card with tv-out, you're there.

Friday, September 5, 2014

Marantz CDR633 Rackmount Slot-Loading Single CD Player/Recorder

Marantz CDR633 Rackmount Slot-Loading Single CD Player/RecorderI have used this model (CDR633) for over a year now recording church services and have had NO issues with this terrific deck. It would pay you many times over to spend a few minutes with the instructions (novel concept for most!) because it has many capabilities that most will never find out about if they don't. MANY parameters can be user defined. For instance, we have it set to auto-track after every 5 minutes of recording. There are no breaks (audible) between tracks and no delays. You can also manually insert a new track point by just hitting the record button again while it is recording. It allows for quickly finding the area of the recording you want to listen to. It is also very easy to finalize the discs when you are finished, just 3 button presses. You can also add text that will display when the disc is played, etc. Very nice professional deck.

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Monday, September 1, 2014

iTEKIRO 1000mAh Replacement Battery for Vivitar DVR-560G Vivicam 3660 5660s 7500 7500i 7388s 7399 8

iTEKIRO 1000mAh Replacement Battery for Vivitar DVR-560G Vivicam 3660 5660s 7500 7500i 7388s 7399 8320 Digital Cameras Camcordersthe ease of finding the right battery was a pleasant surprise and the price was great also. The product arrived before I expected which was the best thing!

Battery pack works wonderful with the charger I also purchased, it seems to hold a charge equally as well as the original battery.

Buy iTEKIRO 1000mAh Replacement Battery for Vivitar DVR-560G Vivicam 3660 5660s 7500 7500i 7388s 7399 8 Now

Monday, August 25, 2014

PHILIPS STREAMIUM SLA5500 Wireless Music Receiver

PHILIPS STREAMIUM SLA5500 Wireless Music ReceiverAfter researching several other streaming audio devices in the sub-$200 range, this product seemed to have the features I wanted plus a lot of good customer reviews (here and at other sites).

I have a large collection of MP3s (non-DRM) on my PC and a WEP-secured wireless network in my house. The physical setup was really easy plug in the AC adapter and connect it to my stereo with the provided audio cable. The wireless setup took more effort than I expected, but in the end my problems were with my wireless router.

Even though it's a DHCP server and works fine with all the PCs in my house and my Tivo, the Streamium was being assigned an invalid IP. I fixed this by using the 'reserve IP' feature of my router to specify the IP that DHCP will assign to the Streamium based on it's MAC address. Your mileage will vary depending on your brand/model of router.

After I got it on my network, the rest was a breeze. I decided to use the Philips Media Manager software instead of the Windows Media Center (or whatever it's called) because I really don't trust Microsoft to not-screw-up my existing MP3 collection. iTunes already wreaked havoc once (it tried to rearrange all my files until I disabled 'manage my music folder'). I wasn't going to tempt fate a second time.

The Streamium device looks really slick. The screen is easy to read and displays a decent amount of information. Selecting songs, artists, albums, shuffling, etc. were all easy to do. And, most importantly, the sound quality is great.

The only negative comment I have:

You have to use the remote. There are zero controls on the device itself. If you lose that remote, might as well chuck the rest of it in the trash. The same thing can be said about many competing products though.

At this price, it does everything I expected and it does it well. I'd give it five stars if it didn't rely solely on the remote.

Pro: Good looking, easy to use interface, relatively easy set-up

Con: Have to use WEP encryption, does not support WPA (or you could go w/o encryption). Need to set up exception in firewall software. These are not really cons, just technical items that may be difficult for non-technical types to do.

I just set up a new home theater system in my basement, and thought it would be convenient if I could transmit the music on my computer to play on the A/V receiver. I searched the net and Cnet for recommended products, and came across this. Some wireless systems will stream video too, but most seemed to have technical issues doing it and/or seemed technically complicated. This fits my needs for transmitting music I do not have movies or TV shows stored on my computer. (This will also show pictures and play videos, but I have not connected through to my TV.)

All you need is a computer with a 11b or 11g wireless connection and Windows Media Player v.10. Set up was quick and easy, and it automatically downloaded the latest firmware from Philips. I have a Philips MP3 player, and Philips seems to be good about updating software and keeping web support pages up to date. I had problems switching my wireless encryption down to WEP level, but I have had issues any time I changed the encryption settings. I made input & output exceptions in my firewall software (PC-cillin from Trend Micro) and I was good to go.

As long as your computer is running, you point the remote at the wireless receiver and select what you want to hear. You can play, shuffle, & repeat songs from your computer, or listen to Web radio stations. My computer is only about 30' away, but I am guessing that reception is as good as any wireless device. For $60 delivered (the website for the Arkansas based store, starts with a 'W'), this is a GREAT deal. Looks good, too not like some computer component. No more loading CDs in the DVD player for me.

Buy PHILIPS STREAMIUM SLA5500 Wireless Music Receiver Now

This item is no longer available on AMAZON (Thank god!). I made the mistake of purchasing two of these after falling in love with the idea of being able to play all the music from my computer on my home stereo systems. Out of the box we had issues as the device only support WEP encryption which has been known to have security issues for several years now. The device does not (and will never) support WPA encryption which provides true wireless security. I went through the trouble of creating an entire separate network without security simply to provide music to the receiver. Even then with full signal strength and after spending HOURS on the phone with Philips tech support the music would still skip to the point you couldn't listen to it for more than about 1 minute. The bottom line is Philips created this line of products to compete with other similar devices on the market and when they weren't able to get them working correctly, they ditched the entire line and stopped supporting it. BAD BUSINESS!!! If I ran my business like that, I would be out of business.

Read Best Reviews of PHILIPS STREAMIUM SLA5500 Wireless Music Receiver Here

I have been all over the net learning about this line of products... only to find that this device has a firmware upgrade that enables what I believe are several shoutcast streams! BOO-YAH, Soma FM without running my PC!

I believe some basic premium services can also be enabled... pretty neat.

Eventually I will try the media server aspect, but thanks to John's tip below, I was happy to get a $50+ dollar internet radio! Set it up in about 3 minutes and its AWESOME.

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Sunday, August 24, 2014

Olympus CS-116 Carrying Case for the WS-110 or WS-210 Voice Recorders

Olympus CS-116 Carrying Case for the WS-110 or WS-210 Voice RecordersI had the case pictured here, but my girlfriend lost it when she borrowed the voice recorder. The picture is of the case I wanted, and am still looking for. Apparently (like everything else that's made well), they discontinued it. What ships is a thin little case that has no belt attachment and doesn't protect the voice recorder very much at all. I returned it. I ordered the CS-112 from another company and they the CS-115, which is better than the CS-116 and better than nothing, but it's still not the case pictured here.

The product delivered was not the product dipicted in the picture. The delivered product was a skin for recorder, vs a case.

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The picture is not of case CS-116; DO NOT PURCHASE THIS ITEM BASED ON THE PICTURE!!!

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Great quality, exactly what I expected... I keep my recorder in my pocket and the case that came with the device was worn thru. I needed a new one. The quality of the one I received makes my device look band new. Thanks for the great qaulity.

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Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Sony TCM-210DV Standard Cassette Voice Recorder

Sony TCM-210DV Standard Cassette Voice Recorder
  • Built-in mic and speaker makes for easy recording and playback
  • Advanced voice operated recording (VOR) saves valuable recording time
  • Clear Voice function improves recording quality by enhancing voice sounds
  • Runs on two AA batteries or AC adaptor

This is pretty much the perfect tape recorder for interviews, whether live or phone -sturdy but light for carrying, with plenty of bells and whistles but a snap to learn to use. (However, inserting tapes is slightly harder than in some other machines.) You can choose slow-speed recording to double the length of your tape (e.g., get two hours of talk on a 60-minute tape), which minimizes interrupting the flow of the interview to change sides or tapes. On playback, a speed-control dial lets you control speed and tone of speech -you can slow down a fast jabberer to transcribe, or speed up to chipmonk-voices past the less useful chatter without missing anything. Plugging in the adapter spares the batteries when transcribing, i.e. when hitting the "pause" button instead of "stop" for interruptions that last longer than anticipated. Sound quality is fine for talk. Not much machine-hiss, and even less on slow speed than on regular speed. Much easier to change batteries than on my previous tape recorder(another Sony which finally died after 25 years of service). Haven't tried this machine for music.

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the 210DV is just the 200 DV with a power adapter and cassette tape included in the package. The power adapter is an additional $14.99 if sold separately, and the cassette costs maybe 50 cents, but if you want to save some money and can make use of the power adapter, this is a great buy!

Read Best Reviews of Sony TCM-210DV Standard Cassette Voice Recorder Here

This cassette recorder has great sound quality and easy functions. I would recommend this product to anyone who needs to record speeches, or music for practice and auditions, etc. This product replaced my old Sony tape recorder and I much prefer this new one. It is lightweight,too.

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I researched many tape recorders before purchasing the Sony TCM-210DV. I needed it to take meeting minutes. I tried it out at two different locations and the hissing tape noise is so loud it overpowers the voices. Loud voices close by can be heard, but the noise is nerve-racking on playback. I tried two brands of tapes, thinking the one that came with the recorder might have been defective, but they had the same background hissing noise sound. Also, I thought I could use the cue for marking places while taping. Hmmmmm. I have a very old ordinary recorder that allows that function. Now, I don't know what to do. I have to take these minutes and am afraid to throw away more money on another bad recorder. I would like to get a refund, but don't know if it is possible.

For a sturdy full sized cassette recorder, look no further. This is a dependable and easy one to operate. I especially like the Double Record Time during seminars which allows your 90 minute tape to become like a 180 minute one and provide non-stop, all day recording without stopping during a speech to flip the tape over possibly missing something important. I used it at a recent convention and it passed with flying colors.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Samsung SHR-1041K 4CH DVR Surveillance System

Samsung SHR-1041K 4CH DVR Surveillance SystemWe needed some kind of security system installed as we have some problem neighbors doing juvenile stuff on our property. So far, so good on this unit. We bought it from a "big box store" so we'd be able to return it easily if it wasn't quite what we wanted. This week, we set up all four cameras at the front of our house. I had no problems getting everything to work straight out of the box. I like the long cables but I think I'd like to see higher quality cameras provided. They're fine and they're in focus and everything is recognizable, but I doubt I'd be able to do any facial recognition from across the street. The "quick guide "wasn't really much help in trying to find the main administrator menu on the machine. "Virtual keyboard"?? Found it by accident by madly clicking on the screen. Once I got into the system, it became easier of course and I already feel safer just knowing that my property is being "watched". I'll write an update on how the system is working after I've had it up and running for a couple of weeks.

Update April 2010: I've now had this unit for about 5 months and it still does exactly what I wanted. It sits there quietly doing its thing; it's nice being able to review the recordings and discover which of our neighbors left the HUGE tire marks on the driveway or which local drunk peeled off at 100mph on Friday night at 2am. Nice to have the proof especially when they vehemently deny it! We've also been asked by our HOA to provide evidence of underage driving on our streets. Their Momma denied it (no not our little angels!) I provided the video evidence to the HOA. No more problems since then. Glad to help! Archiving scenes is pretty easy once you've done it a couple of times. I use a generic USB drive. No problems.

Any criticisms? Yes, but minor ones really. I don't like the "FF" or "REW" features. You'll be revewing footage at, say, 5x speed, see the scene you want to review and it flies by while you're trying to press the 1x button or PAUSE or REVERSE button on screen. Very confusing. I'd also still prefer to have higher definition cameras, so I could make out licence plates/faces but even so, just having the cameras there acts as a great deterrent. Don't get me wrong, I don't sit there scrutinizing every second of footage. Most weeks I never even go near it. But it sure makes me feel safer and a little bit more informed about the goings on our crazy street.

To set this up you need to hook up a monitor, keyboard, and mouse directly to the DVR. Once setup, then you can remove all and hook up to router on network. Trying to get it setup for first run through router is next to impossible.

This works great with XP or with a monitor directly connected to the DVR.

The DVR has a problem with IE8 and Win7. Can get picture and sound, however, the picture keeps blinking off and on. We recently converted all computers in house to Win7. All show the same problem (where all worked perfectly before). I will be looking for a firmware update for the DVR which should be the fix.

The balance between color and night vision is fantastic. The ability to search recorded history works great. I have a more expensive system, and its quality just can't live up to this product.

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This is a pretty good system for the price, but the night vision is just horrible. It is all fuzzy and you cannot see anything at all. I haven't been able to get my remote to work either.

I do like how they give you very long chords for the cameras.

Read Best Reviews of Samsung SHR-1041K 4CH DVR Surveillance System Here

For the price I paid, this system is perfect. In my particular situation, I wanted a DVR compatible with my older cameras and cabling since they're still in working condition. What was obsolete was my old VHS recorder, which only recorded one frame at a time and had to be changed daily. If you are looking to keep your older rj11 cameras, for home use, this system is ideal.

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Would recommend for a great starter surveillance system. I have it installed under carport and porch, so they have been out in the weather (TN) but don't take direct hits from it. The night vision is ok but works better with outside lights. You will need to by a monitor. Frr starters it works great and for the price I paid it works great.

Thursday, April 3, 2014

SPECO 8 Channel Triplex Digital Video Recorder w/Network/DDNS Video Server

SPECO 8 Channel Triplex Digital Video Recorder w/Network/DDNS Video ServerHighly pleased with every aspect of this DVR. Easy to configure, and extremely reliable. DDNS Video Server feature and remote configuration software both work as advertised.

Recommended this to other businesses in the area, without reservation.

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Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Bicycle Handlebar Video Camera Mount - Works for ContourRoam HD Camcorders - by USA Gear

Bicycle Handlebar Video Camera Mount - Works for ContourRoam HD Camcorders - by USA GearI bought this to mount my Contour cameras to my bike handlebars. It works perfectly. I highly recommend it: simple, sturdy, versatile. It is very easy to adjust, and really I could not have asked for more.

Used on a motorcycle to take videos an work awesome. A must have for the motoblogger or for an eyewitness in case of an accident.

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Excellent purchase. Quality made, adjust easily, screws right to my camera, just so impressed with the material....seems very rugged. I bought the suctyion mount also, and it is made just as well. Both can adjust for almost any angle too.

Read Best Reviews of Bicycle Handlebar Video Camera Mount - Works for ContourRoam HD Camcorders - by USA Gear Here

pretty cool mount, i thought it was exclusivley a bike mount but i can put it on a pole and mount my Contour camera to it. looks sturdy will try soon i would recomend this product.

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I have a number of action cameras and bikes (mountain, mini, Harley, etc), not to mention a plane. This covers the range of all of them. Low profile, affordable and functional. Get one No, two they're small.

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Friday, March 21, 2014

Sony BDP-S360 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player

Sony BDP-S360 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player
  • Blu-ray Disc player with Full HD 1080p output for Blu-ray Discs and upconversion of standard DVD video to 1080p
  • BD Live capable for accessing bonus content from BD-Live Blu-ray Discs via Ethernet port connected to your home network
  • 24p True Cinema capable lets you watch films at their intended 24 fps (frames per second), Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD
  • Outputs: 1 HDMI, 1 component, 1 composite, 1 analog audio (2-channel), 1 digital optical audio, 1 digital coaxial audio, 1 Ethernet
  • Includes remote control and composite AV cable, measures 16.9 x 8.1 x 2.2 inches (WxDxH)

I'll start with the bottom line about this player-it just works! If you're looking for a nice, fully functional Blu Ray player that's going to just WORK as you'd expect it to, on anything you throw at it, this is a nice, safe buy. You'll have no problems upgrading from a normal DVD player to it.

Like a lot of people, my first Blu Ray player was my Playstation 3, which I bought last year. If you don't already have a PS3, that's worth considering instead of a stand alone player, because it doesn't cost much more, handles Blu Rays (and DVDs) well, and of course plays Playstation 3 games.

I even toyed with getting a second one, but decided a stand alone player would be a bit cheaper, and I didn't really need the second Playstation 3. (I've also since bought a Blu Ray drive for my computer, so I can watch Blu Rays on it too.)

Impressions of the s360:

-Audio and video are excellent. I can't notice any difference from my PS3.

-The unit is physically SMALL. It's actually smaller than my two stand alone DVD players (though is the same width as normal stereo components, so fits in fine)

-The unit is very quiet in operation-quieter than my two stand alone DVD players in fact. I don't think I can hear it at all except when it's first starting up, loading up a disc (and that only if the room is dead silent). Interestingly, the disc drive's seek sounds sound IDENTICAL to the drive in my Playstation 3! I'd be shocked if it's not basically the same drive.

-Remote is decent-I mean no remotes aside from Tivo's are particularly good, but this works as well as any other (the oft-noted omission of an eject button is a bit surprising, but not really missed, since you have to get up anyway, and the eject button on the unit is pretty large). (And thankfully unlike the PS3 remote, it's normal infrared, not Bluetooth.)

-Performance is very good. I think it takes SLIGHTLY longer than my PS3/PC to load the fancy interfaces some discs use (some discs replace the normal fast forward/rewind interfaces with their own themed interfaces, and loading that interface adds a few more seconds before the disc's ready-so far I've only run across this on two discs, and it's kind of pointless, but this player DOES seem to handle them just fine). Rewinding/fast forwarding on this isn't quite as smooth as my Playstation 3, but it works as you'd expect a normal DVD player to.

-Power usage is very low-the unit says it draws a *MAX* of 22 watts in operation

-Boot time takes...well I haven't timed it, but I'd guess maybe 15 seconds. To me that's plenty fast, but that can actually be cut by setting the player to use more power when it's "off" (essentially it presumably actually stays on, so it appears to boot faster). Players that claim they have faster boot times are probably just doing that same thing, without giving you the option of actually shutting the unit off.

-It has all the features and ports you'd expect from a unit like this, and has an excellent menu system, that's ripped straight off of the Playstation 3 and Portable (of course once you've set it up with the settings you want, you'll probably never really use the menu again, but it's easier than any DVD player's menus I've ever used).

-Unlike some players, it doesn't have internal memory to store "BD Live" internet features, but it does have a USB port where you can connect a USB memory device to enable those features. I have a spare one lying around, but haven't bothered hooking it up because I never use those features. I mean Blu Ray has some great additions over DVD, like the pop up menus that can adjust settings without going back to the main menu-but the internet features are pretty gimicky to me, and I've never used them. Still, this player does support all of that if you care.

(Also unlike many of this year's players, it lacks support for online services like Netflix's streaming service, etc. I don't use those (I just use Netflix's disc service), and if I did use them I already have other devices that connect to them, but if you check reviews, the s360 is a better BLU RAY PLAYER than those other devices-and I'm buying this to be a good Blu Ray player.

I'm probably forgetting something I'd like to mention, but honestly I could have quit after the first paragraph. If you're like me and just want something that WORKS without hassle, this is a great choice.

Buy Sony BDP-S360 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player Now

Initial thought:

I recently purchased the Sony bdp-s360 after already owning a PS3, and two Sony bdp-s350's. The difference I have noticed between this player and the previous 350 is the sound quality on the 360 which is much better. The build quality of the 360 is great but so similar to the previous 350 that I can't rate it spectacular. The entire front face covers the disk slot and flips down to open. I immediately noticed how SONY made cut backs like on the remote, "No Eject" button, and also eliminated a few other buttons on the remote. The player is fully functional and will accept signals from a universal remote or previous 350 model remote with all the functionality on it just incase u want to use the eject from remote features, etc. You can always purchase the remotes indicated if you cant live with the 360 remote.

Video Quality:

The bluray playback is Excellent, appears to be identical to the previous 350 model. The DVD upscaling to me is just "O.K.", again looks identical to the 350, so I dont see any visible improvement with the new Precision Drive that Sony is promoting. I have noticed that the dvd video quality is improved if the video output on the player is changed from "Auto" to "480" when playing standard dvd's. The player also plays movies copied to dvd-r disks flawlessly. The 360 has played every disk i've put in it from bluray, to dvd, to movies burned on dvd-r's.

Options/Extras:

This player does not support any NetFlix, Pandora, Amazon, or any other streaming video features. Also, the Player does not have an internal wifi for updates or bd live. If u want internal wifi then you have to wait for the SONY bdp-s560.

Summary:

(Good)

The Sony bdp-s360 is an excellent bluray player if you are looking for a solid great looking player with execellent bluray quality play back and built in Dolby True-HD & DTS Master Audio through hdmi. No lipsync issues, jaggies, or other. It will play everything u throw at it flawlessly including copied dvd's. Add an audio reciever with HD and u have a movie theater in the making!

(Bad)

Standard DVD playback quality is good but not the best. I compared it to my previous Toshiba HD DVD A35 player, also my Xbox 360 and both were superior to the 360 when it came to dvd quality playback. Remote has no eject feature and also missing other minor functions.

(Bottom Line)

The Sony bdp-s360 is a great bluray player, but with all the competition out there that offers more bells & whistles it's hard to recommend it. However, if you are just looking for a solid, great looking player with excellent Bluray video quality, great sound, good dvd upscale quality, and no eject feature on the remote then this player is for you. I personally prefer Sony movie disk players thats why I made the purchase. I WOULD HAVE RATED THIS 5 STARS, BUT IT ONLY GOT 4 STARS DUE TO THE BASIC REMOTE CONTROL WITH LACK OF THE EJECT & MUTE BUTTON(S).

Note: The LCD used for this review was the 52" Samsung A650 120hz.

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I bought my first player a month ago after looking over as many reviews as I could find. After getting home and setting things up, all I had were standard DVD's to play. During playback the picture would drop out to a black screen but the audio would continue. This would last 2-5 seconds and then the picture would return. This would happen continuously during playback every 10 minutes or so. I tried a couple of different DVD's and it did the same on each one.

So, I returned the player and thought maybe I just had a defective unit. I exchanged it for another of the same type. I set this new unit up and by now I had received some Blu Ray DVD's from Netflix to try on the player. The picture and sound were amazing and I did not have any issues with the picture dropping out. This was a couple of weeks ago.

Yesterday I tried watching another regular DVD on this player and guess what...same problem as before, more picture dropouts. So, I returned the unit and will try again with another brand.

If you plan on only watching Blu Ray DVD's this is a great unit. But if you have a collection of regular DVD's I would stay away!

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I just bought this player as an upgrade to my older Samsung BD-P1000 and I must say I am extremely pleased with this player. It was very easy to set up and to operate. I have it connected to my Onkyo TX-SR705 with 7.1 speaker set-up which makes use of the lossless sound decoders. Hearing a movie in DTSHD Master Audio has been a real experience especially on 7.1 soundtracks. My only complaint (which is minor) is that you have to manually operate the tray open and close from the player itself. This is another great Blu-ray player from Sony. I recommend you buy this player.

This was my first purchase into the bluray world and it didn't disappoint but in a totally surprising way. The unit is sturdy, quiet, and runs flawlessly.

I had been worried about firmware updates but so far there have been no reason to update it so no complaints there. I ordered some bluray discs (despite the ridiculous cost of them) and they are spectacular.

Now for the surprise my old DVDs are spectacular too. This player makes DVD pictures an order of magnitude better then my old DVD player. The heck with buying bluray discs, I keep buying DVDs for one third the cost. I never expected to buy a bluray player to watch DVDs but it was worth the purchase just for that.

The player is a bit slow when ejecting and loading, but I hear this is common to all bluray players. The unit was simple to set up and connect. Highly recommend this unit.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Lexar MS256-40-431 256MB Platinum Memory Stick Pro

Lexar MS256-40-431 256MB Platinum Memory Stick ProI was looking for a storage disk, and this one was priced very economically. It can be used to store a variety of media.

Our older digital camera needs this memory card to work and it is not a common size and that made it hard to find except on Amazon. Installing the new card gave life to our camera that otherwise would have been trashed.

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The Memory Stick Pro format has gotten quite expensive. This stick was available for a reasonable price and allowed me to get a used camera working so I could give my son his first camera.

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Friday, February 28, 2014

EVERFOCUS ECOR264-16X1/1T 16 Ch, 1 TB, Built-in DVD Burner, 480 FP

EVERFOCUS ECOR264-16X1/1T 16 Ch, 1 TB, Built-in DVD Burner, 480 FPFirst let me say I trust everfocus cameras and their DVRs I have used them for years and they work well.

Some issues on this DVR from time to time it will freeze the controls and you will have to reboot to get the controls to work again.

The search features ie the user interface is antiquated.

They should be easier to find what your looking for without having to be that specific.

So for my home use its good but commercially not so good.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Philips Wireless Phone Jack System - Turn any AC outlet into a Phone Jack

Philips Wireless Phone Jack System - Turn any AC outlet into a Phone JackI have been searching for something to allow me to put a multifunction fax machine in a room without a phone jack. Let me tell you, I didn't want to run wires, or spend a lot of money on this. I found some reviews of other products here on Amazon that recommended the Philips wireless phone jack system. I'm SO happy with this purchase! It worked immediately, and with very little setup. You just plug the base into an outlet near a working phone jack. Connect the base to the phone jack, then place the receiver in an outlet in the room you want the phone or fax. Then you just run the phone cable from the fax to the receiver. And presto! Both the base and the receiver have an indicator light on them (green for "online", red for "line down"). My only complaint is that they are bulky. But I don't care as long as I don't have to pay the phone company to run cables and install a new jack. Thank you Philips!

Quick and easy to set up; just plug one unit in near an existing telephone outlet, and plug in the phone line into the "line" jack, and the phone into the other jack. I got this wireless phone jack so I could hook up a phone line to my Dish Network TV set box, to allow it to display Caller ID on my TV. Works great, but sometimes the Caller ID shows up on the TV when we aren't getting a phone call! It usually displays unknown number, and some random characters for the name. Must be some interference.

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These units relay the signals via the A/C wiring that it is plugged into and not via radio-frequency signals (like e.g. cordless phones do). The pro of that approach is that in principle it can reach throughout the house (or building) with little reduction in signal strength. However, it also means that noise on the A/C wires comes through the extended phone line, and in my case that noise is impairing conversation. I'm not sure what is causing the bulk of the line noise, but the manual mentions dimmers, fluorescent lights, and surge protection devices as possible culprits and all of those are present in my house (and I think that's pretty common). I've tried a few different locations, but alas it didn't help. Even plugging the base and extension units in adjacent outlets sharing the same A/C box doesn't fix things.

So I suspect that for many this solution (and others like it) may not work.

In addition to these problems, my units were not matched out of the box (as they are expected to be). I had to follow the re-programming procedure explained in the trouble-shooting section, and even that didn't go entirely smoothly.

Read Best Reviews of Philips Wireless Phone Jack System - Turn any AC outlet into a Phone Jack Here

Basically, I bought this item because I wanted to connect a fax machine in a place in our home where no Jack was present. I read about the interference when making voice calls in other reviews, but hoped this would not mess with fax transmissions. Truly, the noise on the line is incredible and I think it would be impossible for me to make voice calls using this phone jack; however, every fax transmission and reception has been flawless. Therefore, I would certainly recommend this for a fax machine or data machine and would give it 5 stars for this purpose alone. But I don't want to mislead those who are looking to use it with phones for voice calls (for this purpose I would give it 1 star) because I would imagine that it would be totally unusable for voice calls based on the interference I can hear when the fax is dialing to send facsimiles. Therefore, I have given it 3 stars overall!

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It performs as advertised. I needed phone line in my office so my wife can use her TTY phone from her desk with the nearest phone jack over 50 feet away in another room. After reading reviews for other similar devices I found it very confusing as to whether it was voice only, data only, or it supported both. My wife's phone passes both voice and data.

Because the descrition for the Phillips jack said it supported both voice and dial up internet, I went with it. I am happy to report that the relay phone does indeed work as well as caller ID.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Mini DVR Car Key Chain HD 720P Camera Recording Sound Audio Video Driving Recorder Motion Detection

Mini DVR Car Key Chain HD 720P Camera Recording Sound Audio Video Driving Recorder Motion Detection TV-OUT #20I have a # 3 keychain cam that takes much better video..... guess I got a bum #20...... It records and does everything it says it should, but if you move it, or there is much motion, it is blurred. The picture is nice if what you are recording is still!! Since the #3 did so well for me (3 of them), I'm debating on giving either a #16 or #20 another shot.

It's a legit #20 808 and has more functions than the #16 808 camera. It fits the description.

Overall I'm impressed with the video quality and sound of this little thing. It record up to 20 minutes, saves and continues recording, battery probably last up to an hour or a bit more.

I use a Kingston 16gb class 4 micro sd card and works like a charm.

Car charger is pretty useful when recording on the go.

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Saturday, February 1, 2014

VideoSecu CCTV Surveillance Outdoor Bullet Security Camera IR Infrared Day Night Vision 420TVL Wide

VideoSecu CCTV Surveillance Outdoor Bullet Security Camera IR Infrared Day Night Vision 420TVL Wide Angle Including Power Supply and Free Security Warning Decal WI3This camera like other inexpensive cameras either wired, cat5/IP, wireless or PTZ, the color really is not that good. It seems they all have a hard time with the color green like trees, shrubs etc. Up close it is fine but 5 feet away or more, green is now purple. Software adjustments make no difference. The housing is nice and first visual impression is good until you hook it up. Would I buy another? Yes. Would I recommend it? Yes, but don't expect great color, but video is nice and clear.

packaging and delivery are A1, I ordered 4 camera. 3 are still A1 but the 3rd has a problem. The light senser is wild after only a coulpe of days so the camera in blinking from going from night to day vision.

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We love these exterior cameras. They look realistic and the red (led) works well even in the rainy season that we have been haveing.

It will be interesting to see how long the batterys last and I am not sure you can replace the batterys but so far so good.

They do what they are advertised to do.

w stough

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