Sharp AQUOS BD-HP210U Blu-ray Disc Player Review | with HDMI Cable & 2 Movies
August 11, 2009 by Gadgets News
Filed under Electronics News
V MODA Remix M Class Earbuds Hot Pink
April 28, 2009 by Gadget Girl
Filed under Electronics
V MODA Remix M Class Earbuds Hot Pink
V-Moda Remix M-Class earphone delivers exceptional sound from any digital media player. It is also extremely comfortable and moisture resistant so you can wear them for long periods of time – at work or at play. Distinctive polished metallic accents and matching cords let you create a personal fashion statement. It’s a high-performance earphone that sets you apart from the rest of the iPod and digital-player crowd. Solidly sculpted metal craftsmanship Clear metallic and color cables provide an optical elegance Exquisite materials prevent resonance High fidelity sound and bass bliss Warm mids and crisp highs expose music details 30.5 inch plug to y-connector, 13.5 inch even-length earphone cables length Complement the color of your iPod MP3 player, accessories and clothing Mix and match colors to create your own unique style
User Ratings and Reviews
3 Stars Great Sound Quality But…
I’ve had these earbuds for a little over two months and I must say that the sound quality for an earbud is very good. You get nice bass despite it not being an in-ear headphone and the highs are clear and not muddy (usually they sacrifice one for the other) and the sound is not distorted at high volumes. There is one complaint however, like other headphones I’ve tried, namely the Sony MDR-EX series, eventually one of the earphones go out. It seems the wiring is at fault here because if I play around with the wiring where it connects to the jack I can get sound and inevitably I’ve been forced to tape the wires in an ugly manner in order to get sound out of the headphone.
Maybe I got a defective pair but I can only review the pair I have. As a note, I use these headphones almost daily (at work and at home) and usually at a low volume so they have been put through the ringer and the metal casing makes them very sturdy and if not for the one major flaw I would have given these a 5.
3 Stars Decent sound, if they would stay put!
I have a pair of V-Moda ear buds to match my *old* green ipod, so I wanted a pair to match my new pink one. That was my mistake. These are NOT the same design, and DO NOT stay in the ear well at all! I like to wear mine when walking or exercising, and these fall out constantly – plus my ears hurt for hours afterward from the repositioning of the earbuds. They would probably be fine if you were sitting still, but don’t work at all for active wear. Spend a little more and get the *in-ear* style.
3 Stars Good sound, looks, and service. Flawed design.
These earbuds are not indestructible. In fact, they are much more fragile than the stock iPod buds. The culprit is the metal headphone plug extension, from which the cord protrudes. Metal looks good but functionality is a dud: the cord easily breaks from rubbing against the metal during normal use. Apple’s stock headphones have a soft plastic plug end and in that are much sturdier. This is a design bummer by the manufacturer. I have gone through four of five of these headphones with the same inevitable outcome. V-Moda’s service is excellent but I do not want to rely on the service frequently, and so I will be buying from another vendor (probably Apple).
Also, the banana wrap cord thingy is a gimmick with no useful value whatsoever. It is too heavy to wear, as its weight pulls the buds out of your ears, especially if you dare move your head just a little. It might be ok for storing the earbuds, though, if you can not stand the aesthetics of loose cords.
5 Stars clean and clear with exceptional quality
just got the blue ones today ordered them 3 days ago. impressive service with amazon thus far, although im waiting for another item (shipped separately).
first, the quality is supurb. metal buds and plug feel solid. the blue is perfect, it doesn’t match the player itself, rather the blue screen and buttons that light up on my sansa.
the sound. is very clean. it’s not too bassy,(there are other models designed for that). the bass is clean and tight and well balanced, but where it shines is the mids and highs. better than the dennons (300 series), all the sonys ive ever tried, and of course, the stock ipods.
the physical feel is verymuch like the ipods, but they stay in better because of the rubber around the bud part. (keep in mind, they have 15 mm magnets vs 9-11mm in all the others companies. the bass is only produced by the seal of being in your ear canal) translation: for being a non-canal type earbud, the bass is tight and clean and can handle high vol. w/o distortion.
cons: yes there are cons but not great enough to lose a star over. the cord is sticky, so once it gets tangled, its more work to detangle. and if you live in a cold environment, the metal gets really cold thus brain freeze when you first pu
4 Stars Good Affordable Replacement for Apple Earbuds
I bought a pair of Vmoda Remix earbuds to replace my Apple earbuds. I’m not a audiophile so I decided to try to find a good replacement for the Apple earbuds that wasn’t too cheap yet very expensive. I read the good reviews of these earbuds and decided to try a pair. The audio quality is good, probably a little better than Apple’s earbuds. I can’t compare them to other manufacturers since Apple and V-Moda are the only two I’ve tried. They fit in my ears well and the rubber edge ring helps them from coming out. They stay on my ears when I go for a walk. I don’t know how they will work while running. What I don’t like about them is their weight. They are heavier than Apples earbuds and this causes them to be a little uncomfortable for me after a few hours. The other minor issue with these earbuds is the cable. The cable is stiff and doesn’t lay flat easily. The cabling isn’t soft and supple like Apple’s earbuds. There is no collar to slide down onto the earbud ends to keep them together for storage like the Apple earbuds. The VModa earbuds seem to get tangled up more. Despite thse two minor issues, I purchased another pair for my daughter’s iPod after having these for about a month. I hope these earbuds will last longer than the Apple earbuds, which for me lasted only about 6 months when one earbud volume failed.
Creative Zen Micro Photo 8 GB MP3 Player Pink
April 6, 2009 by Gadget Girl
Filed under Electronics
Creative Zen Micro Photo 8 GB MP3 Player Pink
Includes: high fidelity Creative earphones with dynamic bass response, USB 2.0 cable, removable rechargeable lithium ion battery, pouch, & more. Creative Labs Zen Micro Photo 8GB – The Zen Micro Photo is an extremely portable digital audio device, with the ability to display photos and slide shows. The photos and audio information are viewed on a 1.5″, first-of-its-kind, OLED display. OLED technology provides you with a host of benefits when compared to basic LCD displays. OLED can be viewed easily from any angle and in sunlight. It also supports an impressive 262,144 colors – 4 times as many as the current iPod Photo!! Giving you menus in wild and bright colors, and photos that are incredibly sharp, detailed and extraordinarily clear! Photo Album & Slide Show Modes Supports MP3 & WMA Audio Formats Supports the JPG Photo Format Zen Blue Glow – the controls illuminate with a vivid blue every time you use it Vertical Touch Pad makes navigation extremely easy Micro-sized and curved to fit into your hand more comfortably Removable and Rechargeable 15-Hour Battery FM Radio & Recorder 32 Preset Stations Integrated Voice Recorder Organizer Syncs with Microsoft Outlook Contacts, Calendar, & Tasks 8 Preset EQ Settings Color – Pink
User Ratings and Reviews
2 Stars Great while it worked
I had one for almost 5 months, when it was a great player, primarily for audiobooks. Then it stopped working. After 3-4 hours trying to get fixes from the Creative web-site, I am looking for a new player. I hope one that is a bit more reliable than this one.
4 Stars Great player, Tech Support sucks
I’ve owned the Microphoto 8GB for three years and just purchased another for the car. This will keep me from moving it to/from the house, that is, until I want to import new tunes.
The Good:
1.) Great audio, small size, decent battery life, easy to import tunes and create playlists even with non-DRM tunes. Not so with the new ZEN for they will be listed as unknowns. Main reason I went with 2nd Microphoto.
The Bad:
1.) Touch pads too sensitive and takes getting used to. Controls for this is useless.
2.) Software is haphazard at best. Can’t search by artist nor title.
3.) Must connect through Creative’s Media Explorer (CME) in order to import tunes, create/delete/manage playlist. They could have it simple to sync with WMP or other media organizers but no-o-o, they stuck this stupid CME in between your tunes and the player.
4.) Can only delete tunes from the player, individually. Delete the artist name but their tunes remain. This is a 4 step process. Pretty stupid programming.
The UGLY:
Creative Tech Support are imbeciles, moronic, and just plain idiots fro India with English names. They only point to the FAQ page for answers, which by the way, is very limited. After 12 emails all from different idiot tech support offering ZERO knowledge, I started my own debug and troubleshooting on why the Microphoto would not sync with CME. One gets tired of canned email responses.
After much trial and error, turns out my Windows MTP drivers were corrupted. I uninstalled/installed WMP10, rebooted and that solved the problem. DUH! Oh yeah, even supplying these idiots with a serial number, my USA residence location, steps I took to resolve the problem do I get a try this or try that? NO way. What do I get? I get a survey to critique Creative Tech Support for Europe. Europe??? And the last straw was this moron who apologized for the player not working with Windows Explorer. He’s so stupid he crossed CME with WE!!!
Okay, more good:
When the player works, which it has until this hiccup, it works great. That’s why I purchased a 2nd unit on closeout. But you better be technical and computer savy before you purchase a Creative product or you’re in for an astronomical pony ride from our curry eating moronic imbecile friends.
5 Stars Loved it!
I had this mp3 player for a little over a year. I absolutely loved it it was the best mp3 player ever! The only thing I wish it had was a video player but other than that it was fantastic. About a year and a half after I bought it, it stopped working (which was my own fault because I dropped it a ridiculous amount of times) and so I had gotten a rebate from the website I ordered it from. When I went to reorder it, the website didn’t carry it anymore! I was devastated. I had to settle for the SanDisk Sansa e280 8 GB MP3 Player (which I hate compared to the Microphoto), but I really really miss that mp3 player
2 Stars it was okay until the battery stopped working
My brother and I got ours at about the same time and i absolutly loved it. Every so often tthe buttons were not working and it froze up. I would take the battery out and and restart it. Then my brother’s broke and he sent it to creative, since it was in the warranty(1 year), they couldn’t fix it so they sent him a new one. Later, after the warranty expired my battery started to work badly. I would charge it full yet as soon as I turned it on it was half way done. Then after one song it would be in the red zone. My sugestion is that I have used the ipod aswell and it’s technology is a thousand times better. If you want your MP3 player to last then get the IPOD!!!!!
5 Stars Long Lasting
I’ve had this product for two years almost exactly, and it is only now that it is dying. The battery is still long-lasting, I’ve never had a problem with the software, and the player is very easy to manuever around and the click wheel is great. It’s a great little player that I love very much, and am sad to see go- I’m just moving the next step up in creative players.
Tivoli Audio Fashion PAL Portable Audio Laboratory AM FM Radio Pink
February 8, 2009 by Gadget Girl
Filed under Electronics
Tivoli Audio Fashion PAL Portable Audio Laboratory AM FM Radio Pink
Whether you’re lounging on your deck or hanging at the beach, nothing beats relaxing with some tunes. The Tivoli Audio PAL AM/FM Radio is rugged and weather resistant in its rubberized cabinet. It also features some great technology, like the Automatic Frequency Control or AFC. AFC will lock onto the center of a radio station, providing you with the best reception & lowest Distortion possible. Headphone Jack Adjustable Telescoping FM Antenna Built-in AM Antenna Green LED serves as a power & Battery status indicator Analog Tuning Dial with 5 – 1 2.5 magnetically shielded driver Built-in rechargeable NIMH battery pack for up to 16 hours playback Trickle charges while playing on supplied AC Adapter Full charge in 2.5-3 hours Adjustable stainless steel telescoping FM antenna Color – Pink Dimensions(HxWxD) – 6-1/4 x 3-11/16 x 3-7/8 Weight – 2 pounds
Here’s what the press has to say about the Tivoli Pal
?PAL ?offers arguably the finest sound and reception possible from a portable radio.?- House & Garden, March 2003
?Every room in the house should have one??the perfect porch radio.?- Corey Greenberg, NBC Today Show, July 2002
?It looks small but the sound?it’s big, rich and full-bodied, amazingly so.?- Kevin Hunt , Hartford Courant, October 2002
?Considering the radio’s portability and usefulness, the PAL is a high fidelity wonder??- Bill Lammers, Cleveland Plain Dealer, September 2002
?Tivoli Audio’s PAL?simply works so well and sounds so good.?- Alan Loftt, Sound & Vision, January 2001
??the PAL delivers surprisingly rich sound from its’ 2.5 inch speaker. Also striking is the pinpoint-precise manual tuner??- Steve Morgenstern, Cigar Aficionado, June 2003
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars portable genius
every home should have one–we now have three! the new black casing is very nice too, with a slight non-slip grip on the sides. The battery power lasts forever, usually outlasts my ipod at any rate.
This little box packs a big punch, sounds great and is extremely portable. I can’t imagine that anyone wouldn’t be satisfied with this item.
4 Stars Really is a good Pal
I love the easy portability of this radio. I find myself carrying it from room to room when I’m doing different things around the house. Two different friends had them and I really admired the super sound quality for such a compact speaker. It’s held up really well in 3 years. I wanted to get one for my sis, but they used to be $125 and offered more colors–now sadly they’re nearly $200-!! It’s a very cool, handy thing, but maybe not that cool! Glad I bought it when I did.
2 Stars Has not lasted very well – rubber case deteriorating
I’ve had one of these for probably 5 years now (the original PAL, not the iPal). While the device is supposed to be weather resistant, I found that after about 18 months the tuning knob became very “dirty” and staticy when tuning. I think this is due to moisture getting into the case. We keep the Pal on a shelf in the bathroom, and I suspect the steam from the shower did this.
But the serious problem is something I’ve just noticed recently. The rubbery material the case is made out of has started to deteriorate. The rubber case material has gotten almost sticky and can’t be cleaned. And if you make the mistake of trying to clean it with Windex, the material almost melts.
So you’re left with this device that’s totally absorbing all the dirt that comes in contact with it, and can’t be cleaned. Even just a damp rag makes the rubber case sticky now, leaving marks in it and not getting the dirt off.
I’ve seen other rubber things break down this way- usually it’s the little rubber feet on older components, or certain cables.
And while the Tivoli still works now, it’s kind of gross looking and worse is kind of strange to touch because of the permanent stickiness.
This is an expensive radio, and I just think it should have lasted longer than it did.
My only other operational complaint is that there is no “AUX’ input switch on the front panel… you have to plug and unplug the jack from the back, which makes switching from radio to Ipod a hassle.
5 Stars Best radio I ever owned
Short and sweet. The best radio I have ever owned. Buy it. Better bye two.
5 Stars One of the best purchases I’ve made
I spend a lot of time working around the house and garden and this radio is an indispensable companion. I’ve had mine for about 4 years and use it at least once or twice a week. Mostly I listen to NPR but also hook up my ipod from time to time. The rechargeable battery is still going strong. I can easily get a whole day out of it. And Tivoli sells a replacement battery if necessary.
On the sound – yes it’s mono but here’s the thing… you cannot get stereo imaging out of a radio this small. Tivoli figured wisely that one good speaker is better than two so-so speakers that only give the visual appearance of stereo imaging. The sound has suprising depth and warmth for such a small package that never fatigues the ear. The volume is limited to about a 50ft listening radius.
On the reception – it is good but not as good as some of the other reviewers have reported in my experience. I have had occasional trouble with interference as I’ve walked past the radio even outdoors. And it was no better than any other radio at picking up the ball game at work. The reception is okay but don’t expect miracles.
On the portability – yes it is a brick. I would strongly recommend the optional carrying bag if you plan to use it as I do. It has pockets specifically designed for the ipod and it does a good job of protecting your gear as you toss it around (it’s a thick, soft canvas material). The long strap makes it a grab-and-go item.
On the quality – the iPAL has a quality feel to it. Sturdy construction and a pleasing feel to the controls. Unlike other electronic items I’ve owned the attached rubber protective caps for the inputs on the back are still intact after much use. And I have put mine through the paces. Dropped it off a ladder, left it out in the rain for a bit, tossed it into the car and around work. Have had no issues whatsoever. The carry bag is tough as well.
One final note – the iPAL is no different than any of the other PALs that come in different colors by Tivoli. The PAL predates the ipod and Tivoli just made a white one, included a white 3.5 cable and added the “i” to the name to cash in on the ipod craze. You can get any color you like and get your own cable for the ipod.
I’m not kidding about the title. I buy a lot of gadgets and this is my favorite simply because of the countless hours of hassle-free entertainment I’ve gotten out of it. If my house burned to the ground this would be one of the first items I would replace.
Scosche IHUP6P Hi Fi Ear Buds Pink
February 8, 2009 by Gadget Girl
Filed under Electronics
Scosche IHUP6P Hi Fi Ear Buds Pink
SCOSCHE IUHP6P HI-FI EARBUDS (PINK)FOR USE WITH IPODS, MP3 PLAYERS, COMPUTERS and ANY A/V DEVICES WITH A 3.5MM HEADPHONE PORT; EAR FITTING, NOISE-REDUCING RUBBER EAR PIECE; SMALL, MEDIUM and LARGE REMOVABLE EAR PIECES; DIRECT-TO-EAR HIGH-FIDELITY ACOUSTICS; PINK
