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Roger S.

Roger S.

Joined on 09/12/03

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 8
Most Favorable Review

Good but small touch screen monitor

DoubleSight DS-90UT Black 9" Touchscreen Monitor 200 cd/m2 300:1
DoubleSight DS-90UT Black 9" Touchscreen Monitor 200 cd/m2 300:1

Pros: A sweet little monitor. It took 10 minutes to install under Windows XP with two references to the well written manual. The display is very clear but not as bright as a normal monitor. I was concerned about the abysmal viewing angle on the specs but I don't notice any problems and the screen is still clear even at a much more shallow angle than would be normal. The touch screen works well under windows XP with the touch replacing the mouse (touch to move the pointer to a point, touch once to click and double touch to double click) but drawing out a rectangle for a zoom function often results in a double click. The supplied cable has two USB connectors so the monitor can draw more power than available from a single USB but it worked fine for me with just the master plugged in. It has a standard mini USB connector and worked fine with a stock USB cable.

Cons: The screen is a little reflective which is made worse by the lack of brightness but it's OK. I feel it is a bit expensive given its about the same price as a Kindle Fire but doesn't have half the parts of a Kindle Fire, although it is comparable price to the alternatives.

Overall Review: The monitor is ideal for airport checkin-like applications where the user just pushes buttons. It would make a really nice sofa-side HTPC interface unit but I'm not sure the USB will reach. I'm going to use it as a touch input during scientific experiments to register events and initiate changes so I don't have to run back to the computer and grab the mouse.

11/22/2011
Most Critical Review

Bad Design

HEC 7106BB Black 1.0mm Thickness ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
HEC 7106BB Black 1.0mm Thickness ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Pros: Nice looking case, clean lines with no flashing lights or alien appendages. Reasonable price even with the overly expensive shipping.

Cons: There is a fundamental design flaw in the positioning of the 3.5" drive bays. The drives stand vertical and stretch out over the motherboard, just to the side of the memory and on top of the 24-pin power connector this is a typical position for a power connector). There is not enough space for the connector's wires so the only way the hard drive fits in is if the motherboard flexes a little. Caution, don't flex a motherboard. I have another very similar case from a different manufacturer and the hard drives are horizontal so there is no problem. The case also feels a little flimsy for 1mm metal but is fine once fully assembled.

Overall Review: Might be OK if you use 2.5" hard drives on a 3.5" converter or mount the hard drives in the 5.25" bays using a converter. Over all a bad design.

A small performer

Foxconn NTA350-0H0W-B-A-NA AMD A45 (Hudson D1) Black Mini / Booksize Barebone System
Foxconn NTA350-0H0W-B-A-NA AMD A45 (Hudson D1) Black Mini / Booksize Barebone System

Pros: -AMD E350 -Good looking small form factor -Cheaper than an ITX motherboard + Case + wireless card -WinXP SP3 drivers were on the included disk and installed without a problem

Cons: All minor except memory (but see other thoughts and ethics) -The manual is useless - doesn't even show how to remove the lid. Fortunately everything is so straightforward a manual isn't needed -Limited BIOS options (no memory options, not even a hardware monitor) -More problematic, would not connect to the NewEgg website!! even though Windows update worked fine and most other websites work. To fix, I had to enable Jumbo Frames on the wired LAN driver. It worked fine with wireless. This might be a WinXP problem only and Win7 might just work. -Foxconn working conditions. I thought only prisons have suicide nets. But I bought it anyway, Me=hypocrit.

Overall Review: Added 320GB hard drive (N82E16822136280) and 4GB Kingston memory (N82E16820139399). Installed WinXP SP3. CPU-Z says the memory is working at 267Mz (=DDR3 553) e.g. half speed. Can't work out if this is a CPU-Z problem, a Kingston problem (I don't have any alternative memory to test) or a Foxconn problem. NewEgg doesn't sell any memory on the limited list of Foxconn approved memory. The memory is mounted far from the CPU so this might be real and the NewEgg description claims only DDR3-800 rather then DDR3-1066. It's annoying but it probably won't impact performance for my needs (DVD playing, netflix streaming, web browsing and e-mail). I didn't drop and egg because I wasn't sure who was responsible.

Spoiler Review

Casio FX260SLR-SCHL-IH Scientific Calculator
Casio FX260SLR-SCHL-IH Scientific Calculator

Pros: 30 sin = 0.5 * Solar so no batteries to run out * Full function scientific calculator (see cons) * Normal data entry e.g. 30 sin = gives 0.5 not a syntax error

Cons: Received calculator was a school version. Exactly the same calculator except is says "school" above the display instead of "Fraction", there is no legend of fraction (Ab/c) key and the key doesn't work. I have several of these calculators and have never used the fraction key so it's no big deal but it is still a disappointment.

Overall Review: Shipped and was billed separately from my order, don't know why. NewEgg should include "Good Enough" in the Tech Knowledge drop down.

Unlocked to a Quad

AMD Phenom II X2 545 - Phenom II X2 Callisto Dual-Core 3.0 GHz Socket AM3 80W Processor - HDX545WFGIBOX
AMD Phenom II X2 545 - Phenom II X2 Callisto Dual-Core 3.0 GHz Socket AM3 80W Processor - HDX545WFGIBOX

Pros: Fast and cheap. Saved thirty as part of a combo with an AMD motherboard and then it became a no-brainer compared to an Athlon II X2.

Cons: None yet

Overall Review: Set EC Firmware to Hybrid, switched ACC to All Cores on a Gigabyte MA785GM-US2H and it booted as 3.0GHz Quad core. Unlocked, the BIOS reports it as a Phenom II X4 B45 and is survived 10 minutes of AMD's Overdrive stability test. The room was hot (probably 30C) and operated at 50C under load without changing EC Firmware and at 54C with EC Firmware as dual core. AMD Overdrive doesn't support temperature monitoring as a quad core but the stock cooler was just bearable to touch under load so the processor could have been 60C+. Possibly it got downgraded to a dual core because it couldn't meet the TDP requirements of a quad rather than because the other cores are faulty. Probably fine with an after market heatsink and fan. Runs 4C cooler today probably because the room is cooler. It has to go in a very small case with a 200W power supply (!!) for my 8 year old daughter so I'm switching it back to a dual core.

Desperately seeking an alternative

Dynatron A48G 70mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
Dynatron A48G 70mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler

Pros: Keeps my 90nm X2 4200 at 28C while idle and a maximum of 40C under load. The spring loaded screws work extremely well to hold the heat sink on the CPU.

Cons: This heat sink is as noisy as a vacuum cleaner. It is not suitable for a desktop computer and I am desperately seeking an alternative.

Overall Review: I bought this because the rention bracket that holds the stock fan in place spontaneously broke and the Thermalright bracket (N82E16835999353) was out of stock. My preferred option (N82E16835224006) was also out of stock. I tried the heat sink without the fan but the temperature increased to 65C very quickly underload. I replaced the fan with my stock fan (much quieter) but it still wouldn't keep the CPU under 60C at load. This is a good heatsink for its intended purpose (data center where noise is not important) so I couldn't give it less than 3 stars but for a desk top I wouldn't grace it a single star.