Joined on 10/08/03
Just Right
Pros: The dongle is small enough to leave in the USB when I pack it away for travel. It works with no issues for me. It's not too small for normal hands and not to big to keep with the notebook when traveling. I hate touchpads, so I always use a mouse.
Cons: No issues have been found
Great, failed
Pros: This guy makes a geat little office machine or even a multi-media PC with the right video card. It came back with a The Windows Experience Index of 3.3 after a little overclocking with the software included with the PC.
Cons: It ran well, but the on-board video will not play Blu-Ray. You will need a right-angle SATA power and data cable to clear the stock Intel CPU fan, but it will fit. I had planned on adding an ATI HD44550 to the PCI Express slot so I could play Blu-Ray movies, but it failed just before I got the card. The power supply failed in less than one month. It's not like it was over-stressed. I had not even added the PCI Express video card yet.
Overall Review: Configuration: - 1 x Kingston ValueRAM 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 - 1 x Intel Pentium Dual-Core E6500 Wolfdale 2.93GHz LGA 775 65W - 1 x LITE-ON Black 4X Blu-ray Reader - WD 500 GB 7200 RPM SATA Drive - X1 adapter with 3 USB ports - Windows Vista Home Basic
Now It Shines
Pros: It's DLNA so most streaming players can find it. It had good reception, but I would have an amp on my antenna wire, if I was you. Works great with NextPVR, FireStick, AirTV and some smart TVs. Silicondust's new software will let it be your DVR. Record your favorite shows. You can download HDHomerun to your phone, tablet or PC.
Cons: My only problems I had with it, when I bought it, was the software. That has been corrected. I have no CONS now.
Overall Review: I bought this OTA 2-Tuner to replace an earlier model that was not DLNA compatible. My intention was to use it with NextPVR on my PC. I did and it worked well. The original HDHomerun software did not work well and had no closed captions. After about eight months of owning and using it, I bought an FireStick to watch Sling TV. I then discovered there was an updated APP for the FireStick, Android and my PC. I now use HDHomerun on my PC, phone, tablet and the Firestick.
Nice Little Machine
Pros: Compact size; Quiet; 10 USB 2 ports; 4 SATA ports; Quad core; It has keys for Windows 10 or Windows 7; 1 low-profile PCI; 2 low-profile PCIe x1; 1 low-profile PCIe x16; 1 eSATA; PS2 keyboard and mouse ports The case is easy to open and the drive bays swing out for easy access. This could be a nice little gamer machine. With an added low-profile, hi-performance video. Use SSD drives to lower the power draw and the 240 W power supply should be adequate for a high draw video card.
Cons: A 90 second post on a RESTART from Windows; No USB 3 ports; 240 W power supply The case is a little tight on space to work, but it's layed out well. I added a PCIe x1 USB 3 card to solve the USB 3 problem. I rarely reboot the machine, so the post delay doesn't irritate me much.
I use it for Windows *.1
Pros: I bought it because it is very small and I can use it for for Windows 8.1 File History and leave in my travel notebook. It is also good to create your USB Recovery Drive on.
Cons: None so far.
Great Little Board
Pros: It's a MINI ITX and fits into about any size case. Runs cool and low power consumption A great replacement for a failed motherboard from an home/office machine. With the built-in HDMI it would also make a good media center machine. It plays my movies and Netflix just fine.
Cons: It only has two SATA connections. If it had four, it would be a killer NAS board. With an external DVD, it could still be used as a Good NAS. It took me a while to realize that the video driver would be installed when I installed the chipset software.
Overall Review: I have this board running in a small case. The temperature runs about 33c in a hot Texas garage, but I did add a small fan to the heat sink and a case fan. I think it would be fine without a fan in an air-conditioned room, but I always add a fan to help the processor last longer. I installed Windows 7 and 2GB of memory. It has a Windows Experience Index of 4.5. Not bad for a cheap board with a processor. I knocked off one star for the lack of more SATA slots.
Nice Tablet to Replace Old One
I had a nice LG 8" tablet that worked well for me a couple of years. Due to problems with the old one, I had to replace it. This time around, I wanted one that had 4G LTE capabilities. The SIM and SD cards are easy to install without opening the case. Just open the little door and slide the SD in. The SIM card goes in a plastic holder and then that just slides in. Once I had Consumer Cellular activate it and put in the right APN settings, it cranked up the 4G LTE access. The tablet is fast and has a great picture running things like Sling TV, Netflix and HDhomerun. I'm happy with it. Don't expect it to do texting or voice. You will have to get a third-party APP to do that over the 4G LTE network connection.