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Daniel K.

Daniel K.

Joined on 05/20/05

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 5
Most Favorable Review

Samsung Burner

SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 18X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache E-IDE/ATAPI DVD Burner
SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 18X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache E-IDE/ATAPI DVD Burner

Pros: Fast and quiet. Works fine with Nero 6.6. Decent price.

Cons: Old dual burners allowed Cable Select settings and both drives on one eide cable. Samsung drive didn't work until I configured one burner as master and one as slave (as noted in directions which I didn't bother to read first).

Overall Review: In order to download the firmware software that runs in background you have to register at Samsung. That process is flawed and initially rejected my e-mail address. Eventually downloaded software and it seemed to update firmware fine.

Good product. No problems with setup.

Intel NUC (Next Unit of Computing) BOXNUC7PJYH1 Black Mini / Booksize Barebone System
Intel NUC (Next Unit of Computing) BOXNUC7PJYH1 Black Mini / Booksize Barebone System

Pros: 1. small and quiet. Configuration I installed is 250 Samsung SSD and 2 4gb sticks Crucial RAM. 2. Installed Windows 10 using the usb included version. This Pentium version is a quad core and a cheaper dual core version is available. 3. Works fine with 24 inch monitor and 65" Sony UHD TV. Recommend installing free Intel Display Optimization program. 4. Intel NUC support page has drivers, bios update, and bios and drivers maintainance programs that should be downloaded and installed. After Windows 10 install I used the Intel bios express update program and it worked fine. 5. I use it for basic computing and playing VOB movie files via VLC player with several 8 TB Seagate External drives and it works perfectly. 6. LON.tv has a good video on youtube regarding this device that I found useful. 7. Works well with Logitech wireless keyboard/mouse device. 8. In summary if you need a very small, quiet, efficient Windows 10 computer for basic things like youtube videos, word processing, use as a Home Theatre device (note: does not support HDR but does support 4k),and web surfing and can afford the price of this kit or purchasing one already setup than I would recommend this device. 9. After watching youtube video I had no problem with this kit when I installed the SSD drive and 2 sticks of memory. It is recommended that you use two 4 gb sticks of memory not one 8GB stick. Apparently the graphics run better with 2 sticks.

Cons: 1. Very few Cons. First it is pricey. 2. If you are doing a lot of work transferring very large files I found this Pentium model much slower than my i7 full size computer. So I would consider the i-5 or i-7 versions if you are moving large files between various devices. However, those models are more expensive and there may be fan noise which the Pentium model I purchased does not have. 3. Supports 4k video but NOT HDR. So not a good choice for UHD tv's running 4k movie stuff. However, I believe the i3 and i5 models do support HDR but I would confirm this before looking at them for home theatre use.

Overall Review: Would recommend this product if your need is for a basic, fast, quiet computer for use with the programs most users utilize such as e-mail, web surfing, connecting to a TV. But this Pentium silver model is not for serious gaming programs and you are paying a hefty premium for the small size compared to a low end full size computer from a big box store.

Kingston mac memory

Kingston 4GB DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Memory for Apple Model KTA-MB1600S/4G
Kingston 4GB DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Memory for Apple Model KTA-MB1600S/4G

Pros: Pros: installed 8 GB fine in macmini 2012 i7 model. I have never had a problem with Kingston memory and their telephone support is excellent.

Cons: None regarding Kingston memory. Suggest not installing more memory on a new machine until you have loaded and tested any additional non-apple software. Reason is that if you have a problem with new machine and call Apple support the first thing they may suspect is your non apple memory upgrade and tell you to uninstall it before troubleshooting any other causes. My crash on new macmini was due to a free anti-virus program not the memory upgrade.

12/26/2012

Good Mouse

Logitech Silver Cordless TrackMan Wheel Mouse
Logitech Silver Cordless TrackMan Wheel Mouse

Pros: Easy installation and very intuitive to use. The first one I purchased a year ago is still working fine.

Cons: A little pricey but you get what you pay for.

WD Dual-Option 250 combo

WD Dual-option Combo 250GB USB 2.0 / Firewire400 3.5" External Hard Drive WDXB2500JBRNN
WD Dual-option Combo 250GB USB 2.0 / Firewire400 3.5" External Hard Drive WDXB2500JBRNN

Pros: Drive is fast and quiet.

Cons: Retrospective back-up software asked to configure my NEC3550 burner to work with software. Said yes, it ruined that burner. Even after reflashing and reinstalling Windows XP burner had to be replaced. Maybe just bad luck. It did seem to work fine with backing up on the WD external okay although I haven't done a restore yet.

Overall Review: Firewire plug fits loosely and can pop out of PC.