cover
Martin K.

Martin K.

Joined on 02/11/02

0
0

Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 11
Most Favorable Review

Great addition for 2011 MacBook Pro 15"

Belkin Silver F4U055WW Thunderbolt Express Dock
Belkin Silver F4U055WW Thunderbolt Express Dock

Pros: This adds three USB 3.0 ports to 2011 MacBook Pro that otherwise only has USB 2. Lots of connections, including 1 functional Thunderbolt (see cons), 3 USB 3.0, 1 Firewire 800, audio out, audio in, and gigabit ethernet. I use all but the ethernet and audio in. At my office I keep my MacBook Pro 15" in a desk drawer and run it with the lid closed, connecting power, monitor, FireWire 800, 2 x USB2, and speaker cables. This Dock reduced my cable connections from 6 down to 2 making it very nice when I need to take the MBP on the go -- now I only have two cables to mess with instead of six. This is a huge pro for me and the main reason I bought the dock.

Cons: - Primary Con: This should have had 3-4 Thunderbolt ports instead of only two. The dock must connect via Thunderbolt leaving only one available TB port. Besides a display, I have two portable Thunderbolt drives that I would like to also connect, but with the external monitor connected I cannot connect any other Thunderbolt devices -- dumb! - overprice at full retail; 50% off is where this thing should have started

Overall Review: Overall, great dock and worth the current price of 50% off retail. No way I would have paid $300 for this. I bought this at a little higher, and then the price dropped even more. Newegg initially failed to honor their "iron egg guarantee" the first time I requested citing my match price to the jungle retailer was "lower than their cost." Low and behold 6 days later newegg is selling it for the same price and then decided they could price match when i had them over a barrel. Questionable ethics...

Most Critical Review

old rabbit ears work better

Rosewill RMS-DA5600 - Amplified Digital / UHF / VHF HDTV Antenna - Indoor / Outdoor with FM Trap Filter - 30 Miles Range
Rosewill RMS-DA5600 - Amplified Digital / UHF / VHF HDTV Antenna - Indoor / Outdoor with FM Trap Filter - 30 Miles Range

Pros: Arrived on time in new packaging.

Cons: My old rabbit ears pulled in a stronger signal and 3x the amount of channels. Disappointing performance from this "amplified HDTV antenna." Not worth the money, even though it was cheap.

Overall Review: I am using indoors. Perhaps it works better with an outdoor installation, but so would any other antenna. This is specifically billed as "indoor/outdoor," so I expected the indoor performance and being amplified to at least be on par with my non-amplified rabbit ears. Fail. For some reason newegg's website won't load this item when I try to do a return. It loads every item in my purchase history except this one. Maybe they don't want this cr4p back? By the time I pay return shipping, it probably isn't worth it anyway.

Already started flickering after 2 yrs of use

SunSun Lighting A19 LED Light Bulb / E26 Base / 6.5W / 40W Replace / 450 Lumen / Dimmable / UL / 5000K / Cool White
SunSun Lighting A19 LED Light Bulb / E26 Base / 6.5W / 40W Replace / 450 Lumen / Dimmable / UL / 5000K / Cool White

Pros: - Was affordable option when I bought - pleasing light for ceiling fan fixture in bedroom

Cons: 1 bulb started flickering within two years time. These things have a 6-year warranty. Only place to contact is in China -- doubt I will get anywhere based on reviews here. I would recommend going with something else. Disappointed!

These are better than expected

D-Link DCS-932L/2Q Cloud Wireless IP Camera, 640x480 Resolution, Night Vision, Mydlink Enabled (2 PACK)
D-Link DCS-932L/2Q Cloud Wireless IP Camera, 640x480 Resolution, Night Vision, Mydlink Enabled (2 PACK)

Pros: • wifi enabled, so is great for places where it would be difficult to run a data cable • has ethernet port if you want to hard wire • night vision works well (as long as you don't try it through glass!) • microphone picks up audio well (see cons for more on this) • iPhone app so I can quickly and easily monitor from anywhere • lightweight and easy to attach to wall with two small screws • Fantastic price! ($40 ea.)

Cons: • resolution/clarity a little low, but completely acceptable for a cam in this price range • power cord kind of short (maybe 3 feet?), so limits placement options or requires use of an extension cord • audio has some static, which becomes more pronounced when you turn up the volume, but it picks up surprisingly well. When my dog is eating, I can hear her crunching on her food. It can even pick up a low growl.

Overall Review: I use 2 of these cams to monitor my dogs/yard when I am away. One is inside my garage where they have access to a kennel through a dog door. Night vision works great here. Only downside is due to the low resolution, I can tell my dog is chewing on something, but cannot tell what she is chewing on. The other cam is in my bedroom looking out a window to the backyard. In this type of situation you cannot use the night vision because the infrared bounces off the glass of the window, which washes out the image so that you can't see at night. But daytime viewing is good, even when the sun comes around. I didn't expect much from these webcams, but the features and ability to monitor when away exceeded my expectations. I doubt you'll find something better for the money. I would buy these again and recommend them to my family and friends.

10/16/2014

WOW THESE ARE BRIGHT - great value!

GPCT Cree Q5 LED Bike Cycle Zoomable Twin Front Torch Head Light Set
GPCT Cree Q5 LED Bike Cycle Zoomable Twin Front Torch Head Light Set

Pros: - 3 mode headlight (high, low, flash) - 6 mode tail light - batteries supplied for all lights - thumbscrews for headlights easy to operate to remove headlight from bike - zoomable light beam to adjust to the width you would like - headlights can double as flashlight and are easily removed from the bike mount - incredible value at only $13 shipped on sale (you can break this down to $7.50 per headlight with a free tail light)

Cons: - tail light is just average, but the headlights are the main reason to purchase this - lights do not appear to be water proof so I would avoid riding in rain with these - strange manufacture odor upon opening packaging that lasted for days inside garage; what chemicals are used in making these, anyway?

Overall Review: I have different bike headlights, some cheaper ones are very poor and are OK as a "be seen" light at dusk/night, but those are no good for actually trying to see where you are going if riding in the dark. These headlights are more than a "be seen" light, they actually allow you to see the road ahead of you when riding at night. The regular price of $26 for two of these is a fantastic deal. I feel guilty for being able to purchase these at $13 for the pair plus a tail light. You could only run one of these and still do well. I actually bought two sets (4 headlights) to put one on my wife and kids' bikes. They perform much better than I expected them to. My primary bike light setup is a $60 Fenix Cree tactical flashlight mounted on a Two Fish Unlimited Flashlite Holder and with a Planet Bike Turbo Superflash as my rear light. The brightness of these headlights rival the Fenix and cost a LOT less. These are a winner for anyone wanting a bright bike headlight.

1TB Samsung 840 EVO works great in 27" iMac

SAMSUNG 840 EVO MZ-7TE250BW 2.5" 250GB SATA 6Gb/s 1x nm Samsung Toggle DDR 2.0 3-Bit MLC NAND Flash Memory (400Mbps) Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
SAMSUNG 840 EVO MZ-7TE250BW 2.5" 250GB SATA 6Gb/s 1x nm Samsung Toggle DDR 2.0 3-Bit MLC NAND Flash Memory (400Mbps) Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Pros: Bought the 1TB Samsung 840 EVO to put in a 27-inch 2013 iMac 3.5GHz i7 and replace the stock 3.5" 1TB HDD. Formatted it gives 999.x GB of disk space. I also did a fresh install 10.9.2 and all my apps and then copied over my data files. Taking up 470GB currently. Blackmagic Disk Speed Test gives consistent write speeds of 491MB/sec and 513MB/sec read.

Cons: absolutely none

Overall Review: I have had good success with a Samsung 830 in my MacBook Pro, going 2 years strong. When I purchased a refurb 2013 iMac that had the 3.5GHz i7 processor upgrade and 4GB upgraded video but the stock 1TB HDD, this drive was the best solution for me to get 1TB SSD. Although Apple's PCIe SSD is 50% than SATA SSD, their 1TB SSD wasn't an option for my refurb iMac (you take what you can get), and at $1K, wasn't in my budget either. Also, I like how I can flash this SSD with an external USB optical drive on the optical-drive lacking iMac. The Crucial M4 I had in my previous iMac required an INTERNAL optical drive for a (necessary) firmware update, which required me to reopen the iMac case, install the SSD in my 2011 MacBook Pro with optical drive, then after flashing, reinstall the SSD back in the iMac. What a pain, as iMacs are not easy to get into. I avoided Crucial this time for their inability to flash via external USB drive.