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Mark P.

Mark P.

Joined on 09/04/10

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 20
Most Favorable Review

Not the Z-5500's

Logitech Z906 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System - THX, Dolby Digital and DTS Digital Certified - Black
Logitech Z906 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System - THX, Dolby Digital and DTS Digital Certified - Black

Pros: My Z-5500's went kaput and Logitech sent me these as a replacement. For better or worse? Well, the controller on these are a step up and they don't have some of the issues like an overheating controller or an initial volume lag I had with the Z-5500's and the power isn't bad. I'd say satisfactory by comparison. BUT...

Cons: The Z906's are definitely a step down in power. The sub on the Z-5500's was a beast. This sub, more like the Z-5500's little brother, is satisfactory, but doesn't have the raw unrestricted power of the Z-5500's.

Overall Review: Overall I'm satisfied, and if I didn't have a direct comparison with the Z-5500's, I'd say these are pretty good. I must note Logitech's customer service is literally the best customer service I've ever experienced. When my Z-5500's went out, I merely had to return the control pod for which they paid the shipping, and they sent me the Z906 upgrade complete with absolutely no cost to me. Because of that, Logitech in itself worth it's weight in gold.

Most Critical Review

Worth knowing.

ASUS VG248QE 24" Full HD 1920 x 1080 1ms (GTG) 144Hz DVI-D HDMI DisplayPort Built-in Speakers Asus Eye Care with Ultra Low-Blue Light & Flicker-Free Backlit LED NVIDIA 3D Gaming Monitor
ASUS VG248QE 24" Full HD 1920 x 1080 1ms (GTG) 144Hz DVI-D HDMI DisplayPort Built-in Speakers Asus Eye Care with Ultra Low-Blue Light & Flicker-Free Backlit LED NVIDIA 3D Gaming Monitor

Pros: So, this is like a follow up. As far as speed goes, this is the ticket.

Cons: Well, I had to return it. All my kudos from my other review are still true, but after the initial shock and you actually spend some time with this monitor, for me, I have to confess it strained my eyes. It's kind of like the strain you feel when you're watching a 3-d movie or something. At first I had to contemplate whether a minor irritant like that was something I could overcome. Trust me, my games looked never better and parting with this finally turned into a necessary concession. It's awesome, but after a couple of hours, reading and stuff is really tough. I believe I now have a better picture of why these kinds of refresh rates wouldn't just be standard. I just don't think they quite have the solution ready for prime time.

Eye Comfort.

ASUS VP28UQG 28" Ultra HD 3840 x 2160 4K Resolution 1ms 2 x HDMI, DisplayPort FreeSync Technology Asus Eye Care with Ultra Low-Blue Light Flicker-Free Technology Widescreen LED Backlit LCD Monitor
ASUS VP28UQG 28" Ultra HD 3840 x 2160 4K Resolution 1ms 2 x HDMI, DisplayPort FreeSync Technology Asus Eye Care with Ultra Low-Blue Light Flicker-Free Technology Widescreen LED Backlit LCD Monitor

Pros: Great panel. 8 hours of game play and no eye strain! I also noticed no color adjustment was necessary. I used the default settings both on the monitor and my desktop controls. That's never happened. The blacks are perfect. The whites aren't piercing.

Cons: It took two tries. The first panel had switching problems that resulted in an unstable picture sometimes. It was an easy fix, but I had to trouble with it. But the panel was so nice when it was stable, it was worth a second try.

Overall Review: I have to note, I haven't successfully played anything in UHD yet. Gaming worked, but my Vudu account says I need a 4k compliant monitor. Oh, if you're a gamer, my system that runs everything in 1920 x 1080 at 100fps+, dropped by half at 3840 x 2160. That was a wake up.

Nice Little Mouse

Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 1850 - Black (U7Z-00001)
Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 1850 - Black (U7Z-00001)

Pros: I have to admit I, I thought I'd be getting something a little less satisfying, but the buttons have nice clicks, the scroll wheel "notches" are nicely delineated and it's easy to get just one notch or click. It tracks nicely and at three feet, I haven't had any signal problems.

Cons: Mine shipped from China. It must have been brought by boat or something because it definitely took every second of the maximum allotted time which is pretty generous.

Best card(s) I ever owned.

SAPPHIRE Radeon R9 290X 8GB GDDR5 PCI-E Graphics Card 100361-8GVXSR
SAPPHIRE Radeon R9 290X 8GB GDDR5 PCI-E Graphics Card 100361-8GVXSR

Pros: I had dual 7970's in crossfire and I thought those cards were hefty. They had a three fan design and were enormous. Heh. If size is a consideration for your case, take careful measurements. When you pull these cards out of the box (or a card if you prefer a single card configuration), the first thing you really notice is the quality. Not flimsy. Not one bit. You're not going to damage it installing it, that's for sure. The steel back plate (aluminum?) makes the card sturdy and unlike the fan shroud of my 7970's, the shroud on this card is made from a non flexible plastic. Tink Tink. There's a UEFI switch on the top of the card and a very teeny tiny switch to turn all 3 fans on all the time. I took advantage of the UEFI feature absolutely. 10 second boots. I selected ultra fast boot in bios, flipped the switch on the card, installed Win 8 from a fat32 bootable flash drive, and my boot sequence became a real eye opener. About 7 seconds with only my operating system drive, and 12 to 14 seconds with my other drives going. (6 more). I've seen a few exceptions faster and slower.

Cons: When I installed my two cards and saw there were no hook ups for the crossfire bridge, there was 20 minutes where I was very angry thinking these cards might be some odd exception with no crossfire capability. It does not say crossfire ready anywhere either to confirm my fears. So you don't need a crossfire bridge with these cards. Just turn on crossfire in Catalyst and away you go. But is that nicer than the led's on the memory? It lights up the heat sinks. I'm torn. Nah, I think it's the lossless audio like DTS Master and TruDolby that Nvidia didn't have when I tried their 680. Very under rated extra in my opinion.

Overall Review: These cards are without a doubt, the nicest cards I've come across. I'm playing Dark Souls 2 and I can't seem to slow them down. I could always catch a stutter in the opening movie, but not even a hiccup with these.

Nah

Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard for Business (5KV-00001 )
Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard for Business (5KV-00001 )

Pros: I used the Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 and needed a wireless version of the split key design and this seemed to be it. Aside from the keys having a nice click and the sturdiness, what happened to all the space? The keys were nicely grouped and easy to find without looking. Now the backspace is no longer in the corner. Might seem like a small thing and perhaps it would be to you, but the "ease" at which that key can be stroked has been inconveniently reduced to be sure. This keyboard is not ergonomic at all. It's a spit key with every other ergonomic aspect neutered. And because my keyboard sits in my lap, the keypad is worthless.

Cons: Sorry Microsoft, have to go with the Logitech MK550. I can see how a compact design would be nice for travel or something, but I I like the Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 because it's full sized.

Overall Review: If the wired split keyboard design has great sales, why wouldn't you replicate a wireless version exactly?