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Paul R.

Paul R.

Joined on 04/04/03

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 21
Most Favorable Review

Good product

Ion Audio - Portable Vinyl-Archiving Turntable (IPTUSB)
Ion Audio - Portable Vinyl-Archiving Turntable (IPTUSB)

Pros: Does what it claims: plays LPs/45s/78s and outputs USB. Full bass response, fine treble. Auto-recognized as generic USB audio gizmo. Also has teeny speaker and battery bay for back-to-the-60's parties. Closes to neat package for storage.

Cons: Looks like those old $39 plastic record players. Your audiophile friends will laugh as they fuss with their kilobuck toys. - Yes, that Level knob is a stupid place and turns backward. Set the notch straight up, rip, trim level in software.

Overall Review: As another dude says: Spin It Again is the bee's-knees for ripping vinyl. The "Free" version is limited to 3 uses, but one try and I tossed them the $35 for a license.

10/29/2007
Most Critical Review

Cheap Junk

HOD HGR-100 Groove Hopper FM Transmitter for cars
HOD HGR-100 Groove Hopper FM Transmitter for cars

Pros: I heard something!

Cons: This is the worst FM transmitter I have ever used, including the one I built when I was a boy. Radio signal is very weak, audio quality is useless. Construction is so shoddy that I am not surprised some folks got duds.

Overall Review: I see NewEgg is giving this away "free" with some products... even for free, it is a rip-off.

10/29/2007

Pretty; pretty sick

Logitech Recertified 910-002697 M525 Red / Black Tilt Wheel USB RF Wireless Optical Mouse
Logitech Recertified 910-002697 M525 Red / Black Tilt Wheel USB RF Wireless Optical Mouse

Pros: Very pretty

Cons: Does not work! Windows does the da-ding-a-ding-a-donk of unhappy USB system, says "USB Device Not Recognized"; several PCs, several ports, both onboard and via good powered hub. Returning for refund/replacement costs a half-buck more than I paid, so I'll eat it.

Printer OK, awkward support

Lexmark C543DN 26B0002 Workgroup Up to 21 ppm Color Ethernet (RJ-45) / USB Laser Printer
Lexmark C543DN 26B0002 Workgroup Up to 21 ppm Color Ethernet (RJ-45) / USB Laser Printer

Pros: Good price for color with duplex. Fine print quality. Fast. USB and Ethernet (no wireless, memory-stick, etc). Drivers installed easy (unlike HP's drivers). Toner may be cheaper compared to other printers in this price/duty range-- that's the promise. NewEgg delivered QUICK!

Cons: Arrived Friday. Did not work. Multiple errors, error numbers not in the manual. Called Lexmark first in case there was a trick. They said Next-Day On-Site service, Wow! Except... nobody called or came, and the fine-fine-print says this model is Exchange not On-Site. So I called again and they said they would ship the Exchange.... then they called back and said they did not have an Exchange for me, I would have to take On-Site. OK, but now it's Tuesday and I was at the doctor all day Wednesday so it sat here dead for 6 days. The On-Site came, worked 2 hours, replaced 2 major parts, found loose bits of plastic inside (yet no obvious damage to packaging?). He called his boss, he called Lexmark, who again offered an exchange and again found they did not have one. So I RMA-ed with NewEgg, that's easy, but have to lug the heavy box to FedEx and I'm out 50 bucks for return shipping, for a defective printer. * Also: a bit flimsy for a hectic offices; USB and power plugs want to hit the wall.

Overall Review: If it had worked out of the box, I'd be pleased. Maybe I was just unlucky.

Very cute, mellow performance

JetWay J8F9-P-LF AMD Geode LX800 Support 500MHz Core Clock and Low Voltage Edition Included AMD Geode LX 800 Nano ITX Motherboard / CPU Combo
JetWay J8F9-P-LF AMD Geode LX800 Support 500MHz Core Clock and Low Voltage Edition Included AMD Geode LX 800 Nano ITX Motherboard / CPU Combo

Pros: Yes, it runs XP! Also Puppy and CentOS and PClinuxOS and FreeDOS/SpinRite. it is a "real PC". In a 5"x5"x1" space. With no fan and little heat. Will boot CF, IDE, USB (thumbdrive or ext-CD). No memorable driver issues. --- But it runs "gently". CPU, RAM, and video are not unlike 300-500MHz Pentium/Celerons of yesteryear, and we used those. It "can" run a GUI; but it would be much happier in text-mode command-line use. Note that the manual suggests use for "ATM" and cash register applications, and the -four- serial ports underscore "industrial" uses rather than "personal" uses. But it does work as a PC. Just gently.

Cons: VERY poor "drive" speed via the CF slot. Sustained read is not so bad, but mixed small read/write is VERY slow, on a CF device which I know is not so very slow. (Yes, I know wear-leveling.) XP shows a desktop fairly quickly, then goes numb for over a minute as it does a lot of initial background work. With most machines, this slow-down is minor; XP on CF gives major stalls now and then. Even your grandmother will notice. Speed with IDE hard-drive is tolerable in a ~~400MHz way, without the stalls for mixed read/write operations. But I was hoping for a no-moving-parts bedside PC.

Overall Review: IDE port is laptop-type. Works fine with one 2.5" PATA drive. Interface appears to be ATA-33. -- All headers are the sub-standard laptop spacing, not 0.1" desktop spacing. JetWay supplies 2-USB and 4-Serial connectors with correct ends, but if you break these tough luck. -- XP install to SD takes forEVER! XP install runs with ghostly colors; but XP used a generic driver which seems to work as well as the dedicated driver. -- Manual is lame. Parts are copied from a standard mobo and do not apply to this guy. English has strong oriental flavor. Information is scattered over several good diagrams. -- This chipset has an encryption engine, which is nearly useless to most users, but shows the "!" in XP Device Manager until you find the poorly labled driver on the CD. -- My "Open Box" item has a glitchy power connector (beyond the odd size); I've bodged it.

ooooh so cute!

Verbatim 49003 Black/Silver 3 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Optical Mini travel Mouse
Verbatim 49003 Black/Silver 3 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Optical Mini travel Mouse

Pros: INCREDIBLY tiny! I got an eee PC and my old mini-mouse looks big. This is just right for the eee PC in my lunch-sack. Does what a mouse should do.

Cons: INCREDIBLY tiny! Too tiny for my ham-fist for prolonged mousing. Of course the eee PC keyboard is also too tiny for my fat fingers. And yet, for light use, both are manageable and VERY transportable.

Overall Review: Get it. If it is really too tiny for you, gift it to a small-fingered friend.