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Michael G.

Michael G.

Joined on 03/21/06

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 24
Most Favorable Review

So far so good

Tripp Lite TLP810NET 8 Outlets 3240 Joules 10' Cord with Tel/DSL/Coax Protect It! Surge Suppressor
Tripp Lite TLP810NET 8 Outlets 3240 Joules 10' Cord with Tel/DSL/Coax Protect It! Surge Suppressor

Pros: It's the second to the best surge protection from Tripp Lite, and priced considerably lower than the top model. I'm confident about the brand as I've seen their products in action.

Cons: None.

Overall Review: Beware that unless you're intimate with your dwelling the wiring may be non-standard and improperly grounded--in which case the warranty does not apply. Lastly, the company has very informative customer support.

Rock solid bang for your buck!

Panasonic All-in-One Cordless Hair/Beard Trimmer ER224S
Panasonic All-in-One Cordless Hair/Beard Trimmer ER224S

Pros: I've had one of these for three years and five months. I've used it about once a week to keep the rest of my scalp uniform with my balding crown. It takes one charge of several hours per week and does what I need it to without fuss. See 'Other Thoughts' for details regarding this second purchase. I will probably get more than 10 years of use between both the one I have, and the new one.

Cons: None.

Overall Review: I've dropped the one I have several times. After all of this time, it seems that a cracked developed on a part of the depth gauge that secures it to the chassis of the trimmer. Instead of bothering with any DIY repair, I decided to look into purchasing another one.

Hard Drive Cooling Fan

ZALMAN ZM-F1Plus 80mm Silent Case fan
ZALMAN ZM-F1Plus 80mm Silent Case fan

Pros: Zalman has won my loyalty. I purchased the gigantic CNPS9500 heat pipe and fan in 2/2009 for the Q8400 that I have been using since. That CPU cooler is still going strong. I was happy enough it that when a five year old no name case fan died, I bought a Zalman to replace it. This is the third Zalman fan I've purchased, to cool three SATA drives that get rather warm without a fan. All of the fans work seamlessly with Speedfan and PWM control.

Cons: None.

Overall Review: These fans are marketed for quiet cooling. But if you're interested in performance cooling, use Speedfan or similar to crank up the RPM's. They will perform. My drives are 10°C cooler with this 80MM fan cranked to max speed. Also, the pictures show clearly that the fan uses a three pin connector. The page at the Zalman site shows the same, but does not indicate the type of connector otherwise.

Zalman PWM Case Fan

ZALMAN ZM - F3 Case Cooling Fan
ZALMAN ZM - F3 Case Cooling Fan

Pros: PWM functionality. Supplied resistor cable for those whom want only 900 RPM instead of 1700. Works with Speedfan on an Intel DX48BT2.

Cons: None now, and I don't expect any.

Overall Review: I decided to go with Zalman for a new case fan because of the high quality CNPS9500 heatpipe/HSF I purchased back in 2009. I'll be going to Zalman when I upgrade from my Q8400.

Most awesome electronics purchase of my life - not exaggerating.

ViewSonic VX2753mh-LED Black 27" 1ms Full HD HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor w/Speakers 300 cd/m2 DC 30,000,000:1, (1,200:1)
ViewSonic VX2753mh-LED Black 27" 1ms Full HD HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor w/Speakers 300 cd/m2 DC 30,000,000:1, (1,200:1)

Pros: Zero Bright Dot warranty. Purchased open-box with dead pixel for 44% off from Newegg, receiving brand new replacement via RMA with ViewSonic and ViewSonic is paying the shipping both ways! I couldn't dream up a better deal than this. I can't tell the difference between the picture on this 27" and the picture on the three year old 19" HP it replaces. Movement in games is fluid. The sprawling landscapes from TES V: Skyrim are at home on a screen this size. And the desktop begs to be complimented with wallpaper. For having .31mm pitch, sitting up close the picture doesn't appear grainy at all. This monitor displayed at 1080 x 1920 automatically when plugged in via HDMI on my EVGA GTX 560 using the driver installed by Windows 7. Setting the HDMI 1 port on the monitor to "PC" using the onboard controls displayed the sides of the picture that were missing. That was the only fiddling required.

Cons: Not even if I had paid full price. And not even if you set it next to a $1000 dollar monitor. I have perspective and am quite content.

Overall Review: My EVGA GTX 560 has a mini-HDMI. Being intuitive and cognisant of that fact I ordered a 6' mini-HDMI to HDMI cord. If you're technically inclined and can keep the internal components safe from static electricity, don't forget that the cold cathode and LED bulbs that come in LCD's are replaceable and cheap.

11/23/2011
D-Link DWA-135 Wireless N Adapter IEEE 802.11n/g USB 2.0 Up to 300Mbps Wireless Data Rates
D-Link DWA-135 Wireless N Adapter IEEE 802.11n/g USB 2.0 Up to 300Mbps Wireless Data Rates

Pros: I've seen a slight speed increase compared to my last adapter (see below).

Cons: None.

Overall Review: This adapter replaces a Trendnet that kept dropping the connection with my router.

11/22/2011