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David P.

David P.

Joined on 09/02/03

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 14
Most Favorable Review

I'm buying more

Aluratek ALB10W 75 W Equivalent 75W Equivalent Warm White A19 LED Light Bulb
Aluratek ALB10W 75 W Equivalent 75W Equivalent Warm White A19 LED Light Bulb

Pros: I bought 2 as an experiment and the work better than I expected. The angles are fine (they don't create a spot problem for me in overhead cans). The best part is their ability to dim. They dim at an even rate as opposed to going from full brightness to nothing which was one of my concerns. Best of all they don't change color as they dim; an incandescent turns almost orange when it is turned way down where as these give you a consistent color just at a lower level. Awesome.

Cons: There is a 1sec delay before it kicks in. Not a big deal but takes some getting used to. Also the color temp is slightly whiter (cooler) than an incandescent and this is slightly noticeable when in the same room as incandescent bulbs, but no more so than mixing incandescent with CF bulbs.

Overall Review: I would say these are perfect 65W replacements, not a full 75W.

Most Critical Review

I want to love this case

APEX MI Series MI-008 Black Steel Mini-ITX Tower Computer Case 250W Power Supply
APEX MI Series MI-008 Black Steel Mini-ITX Tower Computer Case 250W Power Supply

Pros: Looks slick, but only after all the pain is over. It does include a power supply. Solid construction, they didn't skimp on the metal in the frame.

Cons: The power supply is mounted so close to the motherboard that it won't even really fit a low profile after market heat sink over the processor. Upon getting it in there the airflow is an issue. There are no mounts for additional fans, just the back power supply fan and vents on the sides, so there is no bottom-to-top air circulation. Too little space between the power supply and the drives so cable management is a mess. The front panel CD eject button is too stiff to actually reach the button on the drive (using a typical ASUS DVD drive). There is dead space on the right side, if they shifted the MB to the right there would have been space enough for a wider video card on the left (even the 1 slot video cards often have fans or heat sinks that need 1.5 or 2 slots).

Overall Review: I really want small form factor PCs to succeed, but this isn't the case. Bit it isn't completely their fault. They are using standard parts (power supply, ITX mother board, 3.5" bay, 5.25" bay), and there are only so many ways to align these without causing problems. Unfortunately the solution here causes too many headaches. Minor items: Holes in the frame for a screw driver above the MB mounting holes would be nice. The 3.5" drive should be mounted perpendicular to the 5.25" drive bay to relieve some space issues, but leave the 3.5" front panel punch-out for shallow 3.5" bay items like card readers.

Works well

CyberPower 1500AVR UPS Replacement Batteries - Pack of 4
CyberPower 1500AVR UPS Replacement Batteries - Pack of 4

Pros: They fit just like the original batteries, and they last reasonably well.

Cons: They are heavy (obviously), I note it because the box is small and if someone else is picking up the delivery they should be warned.

Overall Review: As it happens I bought the exact same batteries last time, and I wrote the date on them. So, the last set lasted 3 years 7 months.

Review is about the billing only

Intel Gift
Intel Gift

Pros: Comes with a great processor!

Cons: The processor (in this case an i7-5820K) is billed as two distinct orders, the first being the processor itself with a 49.99 discount and the second being the game for 49.99. This processor is for my company and is billed to my company credit card. The price for the processor is fine even without the bonus game (especially given the awesome Newegg service) but with two separate orders I now have a complication to explain to my company accountant.

Overall Review: Apparently I can't submit a review without a rating. This review is about the billing process, not the game.

Happy on Linux

Rosewill Apollo - RK-9100xBBR - Mechanical Keyboard with Blue Backlight
Rosewill Apollo - RK-9100xBBR - Mechanical Keyboard with Blue Backlight

Pros: It works great on my Linux Mint 17 box. The backlighting mode adjustment works, switching into gaming mode works, and the media keys work with Rhythmbox without any plugins. As far as the keyboard's physical attributes go, I'm coming from an IBM Model M which recently died, and this is a worthy successor. The backlighting is well focused on the keys. Translucency is excellent and smooth on all keys. The braided cable is a welcome upgrade, and the connection point to the keyboard is robust. I found the included ports (especially the headphone jack) to be surprisingly handy. Excellent mix of minimal bezel, solid weight, and correct leading edge height. I find the Cherry Browns to be the best mix for everyday use, although this is a personal choice.

Cons: A couple of very minor design considerations: 1) The NumLock / CapsLoc / "G" LEDs are much brighter and can't be dimmed. 2) The "Rosewill" logo stamped on the front is whiter and more prominent than the nice subtle text and graphics elsewhere on the keyboard; it is an unfortunate private labeling choice by Rosewill for an otherwise elegant product.

Overall Review: I've not used the included software. The keys begin at leading edge of the keyboard (this is the right way to make a keyboard in my opinion) so you are going to want a wrist rest. I didn't like the plastic wrist rest that was included, I prefer a gel or other soft wrist rest.

Plastic is fine

Rosewill RX-C200P 2.5" SSD / HDD Plastic Mounting Kit for 3.5" Drive Bay
Rosewill RX-C200P 2.5" SSD / HDD Plastic Mounting Kit for 3.5" Drive Bay

Pros: No problems with mounting the drive to the adapter or mounting adapter into my machine. Mounting screws were included and everything lined up nicely. (Installing a new SSD into a 6-year-old full size tower).

Cons: None

Overall Review: I had reservations about a plastic unit, but after installing I see that metal would be complete overkill for a 2.5" drive bay adapter. Plastic wasn't very good going from 5.25" to 3.5" but it is fine going from 3.5" to 2.5". With older / heavier spinning drives there was a natural tendency to solidly tighten screws which would strip plastic, this is definitely not an issue with a 2.5" SSD.