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Thomas M.

Thomas M.

Joined on 12/13/09

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 6
Most Favorable Review

Decent Fan

COUGAR 14CM CFD Blue LED Hydraulic (Liquid) Bearing Ultra Silent Fan 1000RPM, 73.2CFM, 18dBA - Retail
COUGAR 14CM CFD Blue LED Hydraulic (Liquid) Bearing Ultra Silent Fan 1000RPM, 73.2CFM, 18dBA - Retail

Pros: The fan is quiet and attractive. The blue lights radiate nicely from the fan blades, so the LEDs don't look like mini-spotlights. The frame feels solid and well made. There is rubber around the screw holes to help dampen vibrations, and it seems like it might actually do something.

Cons: The included mounting hardware must be a prank. The screws included were very soft and even though I was using the right size screwdriver I was not able to thread through the fan's plastic without stripping them. The rubber pegs which supposedly are for tool-less installation and vibration absorption simply do not fit in the fan. I had two other people look at them and try. I tried pushing them through with a hex wrench. I tried pulling them with pliers. There simply is no way these fit in the screw holes. Those are both minor complaints. Most of us have plenty of extra fan screws around. I just grabbed some extras I had and the fan installed fine.

Overall Review: I would probably purchase this product again. The cheap screws and ill-fitting tool-less pegs should not be a major hurdle for anyone who has parts lying around from previous PC builds.

11/19/2013
Most Critical Review

Not Worth It

OtterBox Defender Case with Belt Clip for HTC One X Black Built-in Screen Protector 77-19686
OtterBox Defender Case with Belt Clip for HTC One X Black Built-in Screen Protector 77-19686

Pros: I like the feel of the case, it protects my phone well (though I've only dropped this phone once).

Cons: The rubber is very soft, and within 3 months had deformed away from the corners of the hard plastic shell. This was just from the friction with my pocket, I had not removed the rubber since first assembling the case. Within 6 months the tab covering the USB port began to tear. Within 8 months the USB port flap had ripped off and the flap for the headphone port was beginning to tear. When I went to warranty this clearly defective product I was informed they no longer made it and the only available replacement was some purple ones they had in stock or blue Commuter cases (Approx $15 less value, no screen protector).

Overall Review: I spent the extra money for this case because of the warranty. Otterbox cannot properly fulfill their warranty, and the product was falling apart within a few months. I will not be doing business with this company in the future.

Typical Rosewill

Rosewill HDMI Cable 6 ft., Support 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) and HD 1080p, HDMI Cord 6 Feet Black Male to Male, Gold Plated Connectors, Ethernet/Audio Return Channel, RC-6-HDM-MM-BK-3
Rosewill HDMI Cable 6 ft., Support 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) and HD 1080p, HDMI Cord 6 Feet Black Male to Male, Gold Plated Connectors, Ethernet/Audio Return Channel, RC-6-HDM-MM-BK-3

Pros: A decent length at a low price. Cables are thick and feel like they're decent quality (though this is not the case).

Cons: Typical Rosewill quality (or lack there of). Bought 3 of these. One didn't work straight out of the box, the other died the first time I unplugged it. I didn't yank it out by the cord or anything, I just gently removed it from my GPU, installed a new one, and when I plugged the HDMI in it was broken. Weird rainbow pixels scattered across the screen. It really freaked me out since I had just installed a new video card, but thankfully it turned out to just be the Rosewill cable.

Overall Review: Like everything Rosewill makes, you have to decide your self if the savings are worth the risk. For this particular product I would say you can find much better cables for only a fraction more.

11/19/2013

Great lights, Iffy controls

LOGISYS Computer CLK15BL 15" Blue Deluxe Sound Activated Cold Cathode Light Kit
LOGISYS Computer CLK15BL 15" Blue Deluxe Sound Activated Cold Cathode Light Kit

Pros: Beautiful lights. Cold cathodes are still the best lighting for a PC case, and these look fantastic. One light provides a nice glow, two will really light up your case. The lighting is very even and the colors radiant. I've been using these lights for two years and they're all still glowing wonderfully. I've purchased a total of 6 lights from this company and have only received one faulty light (which Newegg promptly replaced).

Cons: The sound-activation side of the product is much less impressive. The range available seems like they intend the box to be mounted right next to a speaker, but the cords are only like a foot long. With a box mounted on the outside of my case and set to maximum sensitivity it will activate on speech or gunshots at a reasonable, but slightly loud, volume. They are not sensitive enough to trigger at average volume. I should probably add that I have a 500w 5.1 surround sound system, so users with fewer speakers might have a real problem getting the sound-activation to trigger without really cranking their volume. The quality control is also very poor on the controls. I've had two of the sound-sensitive control boxes just stop working. Three of the backplates have gone bad on me. One just stopped adjusting the sensitivity all together, and the stops broke on two of them so the knobs will turn a full 360 degrees. This makes it hard to find the maximum sensitivity setting; and as I said, that is the only setting the lights will ever trigger on unless your PC is inside a nightclub. These controls broke after very light use. I probably touched them a total of 10 or 20 times before they broke, and it's not like I'm using pliers to turn the knobs.

Overall Review: It's a shame such beautiful lights are hindered by such cheap accessories. I still absolutely love the look these lights give, and will continue to purchase them, but be aware that the sound-activation side of things is less than reliable. If the product cost any more this would be a deal breaker.

Doesn't Work

Rosewill Black 1A USB Micro Car Charger RCP-SC41
Rosewill Black 1A USB Micro Car Charger RCP-SC41

Pros: Small form factor. Very inexpensive.

Cons: Does not work 98% of the time. So cheaply made that it barely fits in a cigarette lighter properly and the USB port barely makes contact with USB plugs.

Overall Review: Like many other Rosewill products, they are trying to toe the line between cheap and junk and don't quite manage it. (I know, my mistake for continuing to buy them, but some are o.k.) It will work if you get your device plugged in just right, but any movement from the cord will likely break the connection. This is assuming you can get the charger to make contact with the car, which also requires wiggling and twisting the charger to get it to make contact (which is easily broken, especially when trying to plug a device in to the charger). Overall just a very cheaply made product. Even at the dirt-cheap price Newegg offers this charger at, I cannot recommend it.

Passable

Cooler Master SickleFlow 120 - Sleeve Bearing 120mm Blue LED Silent Fan for Computer Cases, CPU Coolers, and Radiators
Cooler Master SickleFlow 120 - Sleeve Bearing 120mm Blue LED Silent Fan for Computer Cases, CPU Coolers, and Radiators

Pros: Fan works. LEDs look nice. Cheap as dirt.

Cons: It is much louder than the advertised db rating.

Overall Review: If noise isn't a concern then getting one of these on sale is a hard deal to beat, but if you have a case with a more open design and want to keep sound levels down then this fan is not a good choice. I've had mine for about a year and it still is running well, but I am replacing it with a fan that will hopefully come closer to its advertised decibel rating.