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Graham D.

Graham D.

Joined on 04/09/05

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 41
Most Favorable Review

VERY, VERY Good for this price!

Polk Audio Monitor30 Series II Two-Way Bookshelf Loudspeaker (Cherry) Pair
Polk Audio Monitor30 Series II Two-Way Bookshelf Loudspeaker (Cherry) Pair

Pros: I am absolutely blown away for how good they are and for how little I paid! I hooked them up to a Sony Home Theater receiver that I'm using as a glorified radio for the "man cave" (the garage) and these really, really sound good! Plenty of bass, clear mids and highs. Don't get me wrong, they're not state of the art Klipsch but they are VERY good for the money!

Cons: NONE!

Overall Review: Newegg, as always, had these delivered very quickly. It's been a while since I shopped the egg and I'd forgotten how thorough they are to communicate the sale, the shipping date, provide you with a tracking number and get them here! Thanks again Newegg!

Most Critical Review

PREPARE FOR TECH SUPPORT!

Logitech Harmony 659 Universal Infrared Advanced Universal Remote
Logitech Harmony 659 Universal Infrared Advanced Universal Remote

Pros: Controls ALL of my components including an HP laptop with Media Center. Trimmed my coffee table collection from six remotes to ONE! (Well, except for the light/fan controller – see Cons). I successfully mapped buttons to learn things like my cable provider’s info guide for programs. I can ‘customize’ which buttons to display for each device and activity. Even if the activity doesn’t come on properly, a ‘Help’ button guides you through (usually) correcting any problems. I still have the option to control each device individually.

Cons: Did not control my lights, which use RF. I read some reviews stating that it even controlled some users’ lights, but I guess their lights were using IR. PAINFUL installation. Motorola digital cable box was the most difficult. I DON’T call tech support, but I had to on this one. If I had to spend 10 more minutes on the phone with tech support I was going to RMA this thing! Buttons are stiff plastic – I prefer the soft touch style. Button layout is not ergonomic. The placement of the ‘Stop’, ‘Play’, etc. buttons are at the bottom. A more efficient placement of these buttons would be near the middle, accessible by one’s thumb. The web interface is AWFUL! Have to (1) sort through the setup (2) setup each device/activity (3) confirm (4) update the remote (3 minutes each time!) (5) unplug the remote (6) test it (NEVER works the first time) & then go back & repeat.

Overall Review: I have a love/hate relationship with this remote. When it works, it’s GREAT! But the setup is a pain in the you-know-what! I read one review that said, “Be prepared to call tech support.” I thought maybe this reviewer just was not tech savvy, but they were RIGHT! After three calls of 2 hours 45 minutes, 45 minutes and 2 ½ hours, tech support and I FINALLY got it right. Whew! And this thing was supposed to simplify my life… Finally, the database the remotes use is a collection of user-based entries. So, there’s a potential for the database to contain incorrect information regarding a component’s function. For example, Directional buttons for my TV were in the database, but my TV didn’t respond, so I had to create my own.

Good speakers but $250????!?

Logitech X-530 70 Watts 5.1 Speaker
Logitech X-530 70 Watts 5.1 Speaker

Pros: Like a previous reviewer wrote, I too bought these in 2005 for around $70 and they've lasted. However, I can't understand why they're selling for $250 now. I realize there's such a thing as inflation but that's just out of control. For $70 they were well worth the price.

Cons: The left rear channel cuts out occasionally. But then again I've had these for 10 plus years. I actually bought the Z506s to replace these, but they sucked so I returned them and put my old ones back in service.

10/31/2015

Not really modular...

PC Power & Cooling Fatal1ty Gaming Series 750 Watt 80+ Bronze Semi-Modular Active PFC Performance Grade ATX PC Power Supply (OCZ750FTY)
PC Power & Cooling Fatal1ty Gaming Series 750 Watt 80+ Bronze Semi-Modular Active PFC Performance Grade ATX PC Power Supply (OCZ750FTY)

Pros: 1. It's quiet 2. It has dual rails 3. It's 750W 4. The red light isn't too obnoxious, but this is due to my case having a vent on the bottom allowing me to point the lit fan towards the bottom instead of up into the case.

Cons: 1. It's not truly a modular unit. 2. It comes with three cables permanently attached; (1) the 20+4 main power supply connection (2) an eight pin CPU connector and a split (4 pins each) CPU connector. One of the CPU connectors just dangles since I only have one CPU (like most people probably do). 3. Doesn't have one-to-one connections. Every "modular" cable is daisy chained to three other connections!

Overall Review: Not really impressed with this. My very first modular power supply came with single one-to-one connectors. If I needed them, I used them - if I didn't, I left them off. This thing right off the bat has an extra cable permanently attached that I can't eliminate! Also, my case had ONE molex connector to attach the three fans it came with. This power supply had a daisy chain of THREE molex connectors along with a fan header connection. This made for a lot of case clutter that I had to stuff behind the motherboard. Also, because my case has its own fan controller, plugging in the fan header on this daisy chain prevented the system from booting up. After I unplugged the fan header, everything booted fine. The instructions are USELESS! I kept trying to find which CPU cable to connect and finally had to search online to learn that either would work and that one of them was an extra. (My video card doesn't require a separate power connection, so in my case it was extra).

Impressed!

Panasonic ES8103S 3-Blade Wet/Dry Electric Shaver With Nanotech Blades
Panasonic ES8103S 3-Blade Wet/Dry Electric Shaver With Nanotech Blades

Pros: Closest shave I've ever had with an electric. This razor is VERY comparible to a regular razor. When I got it , the charge indicator showed only 10%. I decided to try it thinking I'd only get a portion of my face shaved. I was surprised when I finished after about 10 minutes that it was still going.

Cons: Only con is the head assembly is so large it makes it difficult to use the trimmer cause I can't see around it! But, I didn't really buy this to use as a trimmer, so not a big deal for me.

Overall Review: I'm really impressed with this razor. My first electric was an awful Remington foil shaver. All it did was make noise and pull hairs out! Ouch! My second one was a Norelco-Philips rotary that did a fair job, but always left stubble. This one cuts REALLY close. As a matter of fact, I nicked myself the first time I shaved with it! It's easy to clean, can be used wet or dry - I haven't tried it wet yet. I have black hair and beard and usually have a 3 O'Clock shadow - think Bob Geldorf. I've actually shaved at night and skipped shaving the next morning because I just didn't need it.

She's a 'no good'!

AVerMedia 795522961976 AVerTV Combo G2 TV Tuner Card
AVerMedia 795522961976 AVerTV Combo G2 TV Tuner Card

Pros: * Comes with WMC remote * Has a 'daughter board' for connecting IR blasters * Works on Win 7 64-bit with Windows Media Center

Cons: * Takes FOREVER to scan for channels (30 minutes plus and in several instances found zero channels) * Receives only ATSC (over the air) channels * Will NOT receive clearQuam or analog cable channels * In an effort to get cable channels I installed the software that came with it. HORRIBLE!!! It picked up much fewer stations than WMC (12 versus 28). Also, when viewing with AverMedia's software, the picture was a small 'box' within their application! It was IMPOSSIBLE to view ONLY the broadcast. You are forced to look at their horrible interface while trying to watch TV!

Overall Review: Steps I took; 1. Connected Antenna & cable from wall. Used WMC, got 24 OTA & 0 cable stations. 2. Card set cable type as analog. I’m not sure though, since when scanning with TV I get 120 digital AND 12 analog. I manually set it as digital, rescanned & got 28 OTA & 0 cable stations. 3. I swapped the Antenna & cable inputs, scanned, got 12 OTA & 0 cable stations. 4. I read a review where the poster said he ‘split’ the cable from the wall & ran BOTH to the 2 inputs. So, I unhooked the Antenna, split the cable & ran both to the card. 22 OTA & 0 cable stations. 5. I then installed AverMedia’s software in an attempt to get cable stations. Again, 0 cable stations. After that, I removed it & am returning it. One other thing–maybe I’m dumb, but why don’t TV cards have a coax out to the TV? That way you could watch TV without having to turn the PC on. I bought this primarily for recording TV, so when I’m just watching, it makes no sense to watch it through the PC.