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Brian N.

Brian N.

Joined on 09/12/03

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 6
Most Favorable Review

Perfect for my need

ASUS Desktop PC CHROMEBOX-M004U Celeron 2955U (1.4 GHz) 2 GB DDR3 16 GB SSD Intel HD Graphics Shared memory  Google Chrome OS
ASUS Desktop PC CHROMEBOX-M004U Celeron 2955U (1.4 GHz) 2 GB DDR3 16 GB SSD Intel HD Graphics Shared memory Google Chrome OS

Pros: My mother needed a new computer after her 10 year old laptop finally failed beyond my ability to repair it. Based on her computer usage, I knew ChromeOS was the way to go, but the Chromebook screens were too small for her eyesight, and she never moved her old 17" laptop off the desk anyway, so I set her up with this. I mounted it on the back of a 24" monitor with the included bracket and wired cheap speakers/keyboard/mouse to it. She loves it, and I love not having to maintain her OS anymore.

Cons: none so far

Most Critical Review

worked until it didnt

BIOSTAR TZ77XE3 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
BIOSTAR TZ77XE3 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Pros: worked great (until it didn't)

Cons: Ethernet and USB began intermittently failing functionality after 10 months of use. I see other folks here have had similar issues so I'm not the one-off. I won't be trusting this manufacturer again.

11/25/2013

the best keyboard I've ever owned

CM Storm QuickFire XT - Full Size Mechanical Gaming Keyboard with CHERRY MX Brown Switches
CM Storm QuickFire XT - Full Size Mechanical Gaming Keyboard with CHERRY MX Brown Switches

Pros: I purchased this keyboard in October 2013, 16 months ago and have had zero problems using it for 8-12 hours daily. The construction is STURDY (it doesn't flex at all) and they keyboard has more weight to it than was expected. It doesn't slide around at all thanks to the large rubber pads. Like all mechanical keyboards, this one has everything I need for gaming and work. Where it stands out, for me, is that this model has NONE of the things that I DON'T want.

Cons: The only thing I don't like is that the windows button lock feature doesn't stay on after shutting down the PC, but that is to be expected.

Overall Review: So many manufacturers try to gimmick-up high-end quality keyboards with extra macro buttons, LED displays, wrist rests, USB hubs, lighting schemes, etc. Maybe it does help sales, but I find it all off-putting. The lower-end mechanical keyboards seem to make compromises of quality with connectors that break and flimsy construction. This model is exactly the high-quality no-frills keyboard I was looking for. Thank you so much, CoolerMaster!

Acceptable

Kingston DataTraveler 100 2GB Flash Drive (USB2.0 Portable) DT100/2GB
Kingston DataTraveler 100 2GB Flash Drive (USB2.0 Portable) DT100/2GB

Pros: There is no cap to lose. The slide locks open/closed like a retractable box-cutter. I am getting write speeds at an average of 6MB/s which is excellent in my book, especially when compared to my newer 16GB 'water-proof aircraft-aluminum' model, which only writes at 1.05MB/s on average.

Cons: The plastic feels a bit cheap/flimsy. If this was a longer model with a cap, I'd be afraid it would break. As it is so small though, the cheap plastic seems adequate enough I guess. I hope I'm not wrong.

Overall Review: I purchased two of these. This review is applicable to both.

Sturdy, Large

CORSAIR 16GB Flash Survivor Ultra Rugged USB 2.0 Drive Model CMFUSBSRVR-16GB
CORSAIR 16GB Flash Survivor Ultra Rugged USB 2.0 Drive Model CMFUSBSRVR-16GB

Pros: It's big. It's sturdy as hell. You can attach it to your keychain (or whatever) from either side, so you have the option of having it removable from the cover or having the cover removed with the drive still attached, which is nice. It also came with a short USB extension cord, which comes in quite handy as you can imagine.

Cons: I'm getting a write speed average of only 1.05MB/s (in Windows Vista) (yes USB 2.0 mode), which I am quite disappointed with. I am accustomed to having write speeds in the neighborhood of 6MB/s and get this on my 2GB drives.

Overall Review: Maybe read/write speed is a known sacrifice with larger drive designs, but if so, I was not aware of it.

Great Buy

FUJIFILM S700 Black 7.1 MP 10X Optical Zoom Digital Camera
FUJIFILM S700 Black 7.1 MP 10X Optical Zoom Digital Camera

Pros: really nice pictures. I never would have thought I could be so happy with a digital camera. The image stabilization is great, but it's not perfect. You still have to try to be steady. tri-pod makes a huge difference to that end.

Cons: the carrying strap it comes with is cheap, so if you're like me and take it to the beach it will irritate your skin constantly whether you put it on your neck or shoulder. this isn't bad enough to take away a star to me though.

Overall Review: they have a newer model of this same style that I'm considering purchasing - i think i may give this one to my mother since she loved the pictures i gave her with this camera and was inquiring about it.