Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Spelling
Unlike many "educational" computer programs, this one is actually fun! You need to read and think carefully to find the clues to rescue the poor citizens who have been turned into appliances by the mad Dr Dabble. Along the way you practice reading skills such as parts of speech, word association and sequencing. If only all lessons were this much fun a lot more kids would beg to go to school. Reading Blaster Ages 9 - 12 (Jewel Case)
I have used Reading Blaster for over ten years with my students, and I still love it. They have a great time learning vocabulary, grammar and all sorts of reading skills. This updated version works great with Vista.
First of all, I would like to stress that plot matters a lot to me. If it doesn't matter so much to your child, you can disregard some of my review.
The game begins with an annoying cutscene where everyone is far too overdramatic. This might be funny to young kids, but I think older kids (like the ones in the AGE RANGE, like me when I first played this) will find it irritating. On the sign-in screen, they make it sound like "play the opening cutscene" is optional, but the options cannot be unchecked unless you check something else, and they forgot to put a "don't play opening cutscene" option. Basically, the option doesn't even work.
As for gameplay, a lot of these activities are fun, especially the puzzle games, the ghost crossing game, and, my personal favorite, a sentence-building game that teaches parts of speech. I'm not much of a judge about educational content, but I do believe this would be a good way for kids to review what they learned, even if it's not very challenging for the upper end of the age range.
One unique part about this game is that, to free the missing guests, you have to find three objects belonging to them. You win an object after each game you win. To find out which three objects belong to each guest, and to find out which two objects are red herrings, you need to find "clues". Clues are certain pieces of paper lying around that you wipe off to find a message. The difficulty of the clues will increase as the game progresses.
But, like I said, certain plot deatils have a big effect for me, which is the reason I only gave the product two stars (Minor spoilers below). As the discription says, the goal is to help a green goblin called Rave rescue six citizens that Dr. Dabble captured. After you rescue them, a news story the citizen wrote will explain just why Dabble hates them so much, as well as what happened to them in the mansion. The first two citizens are victims of a love triangle. Fine. The movie star Rave is obssesing over in the beginning cutscene owned a poodle that irritated the not-so-good doctor. O...Kay. But the reason he wants revenge on a particular coach is because the coach gave him a bad grade in PE. What?!?!
But that's not the worst of it. A librarian named Gorky Barf or something like that was kidnapped because he would torture (sort of) kids who didn't return their library books on time. Ouch. But the mayor Jackie O'Cassidy is the worst by a long shot. Apparently she and Dabble ran against each other for class president, and instead of beating him by fair means, spoiled little Jackie made her mom, who was also the mayor at one point, build a highway through Dabble's bedroom. When I read that, I wished I'd left her as a vaccuum cleaner. That's just evil.
Also, there's this mysterious ghost named Lydia. She's probably the best part of the game, especially since her obituary is one of the 'red herring clues' lying around the library and she has her own laptop. She promises that when you finish the game she'll give you the password to her laptop so you can read her story.
I was excited to read her laptop... until I read it. It's a story of how Lydia drives herself mad hiding from what turns out to be a version of herself, and, quite naturally for the scary story attitude, it ends on a total cliff-hanger, never to be resolved. Very scary, and it doesn't make much sense, either.
(Minor spoilers end here)
So, like I said, if plot isn't a big deal for you, this is a very good game. But if your child has an active imagination (like me), you might want to leave this on the shelf.
I remember playing this game when I was a kid and I absolutely LOVED it!!! I love the fact that it has an actual story line and it's not just mindlessly having you figure out puzzles for no reason. I was just thinking about this game the other day and how I still wanted to play it again even though I'm now well past the age limit! It may not be new, but I 100% recommend this game!
Even though the Amazon description of the software list that it's mac compatible, it's actually only xp and vista compatible. I was only able to use it on my mac, because I had vista loaded on my mac via bootcamp. Be careful you have the required system before you buy.'
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Throw Blankets - snuggie, as seen on tv
I bought this as a secret santa gift, so I didn't use it myself, but did feel it. The material was rougher and thinner than I expected. I think calling it "fleece" is a stretch. Hope my giftee was distracted by her love of the Cowboys! NFL Dallas Cowboys Comfy Throw, Officially Licensed Blanket with Sleeves "Stripes Design"
I bought my wife this gift as a half-joke. She's always cold; I'm always hot; we're both Steelers fans. However, since we bought it, she's worn it almost every evening. It's soft, the arms are long enough (she's a tall woman), and the length is great.
She has two complaints, however. The first is, it just isn't thick enough. It's not nearly as thick as a blanket, or even a thick robe. It's more like a light-weight robe and it'd be nice if it were a little thicker. Second, she feels it doesn't come around her back enough. Now, that's the design of the snuggie itself, but it is something to consider.
Still, she wears it all the time, the Steelers design is very nice, and it has so far held up pretty well (no tears or frays).
This comfy throw is the warmest fleece I ever owned. It is plenty large. I am 6'2" and it covers me up with even more room to spare. Arrived on time and was packaged really well. Seems to be of excellent quality. I like the sleeves feature. Warm and Toasty!
I live in the mountains where there is snow in sight out the window as I write this. It was a bit of a gag gift for my wife but our daughter grabbed it and was using it all Christmas weekend. It is warm, has sleeves so the wearer can sip beverages while wearing it and is probably most useful for watching football games on TV. Everybody liked it. - Snuggie - Throw Blankets - As Seen On Tv - Warm'
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Throw Blankets - snuggie, as seen on tv warm Throw Blankets - snuggie, as seen on tv
Blue Microphones - mic, microphone
Blue has become famous for its striking microphone designs, and the retro-modern Yeti is a worthy addition to the company's product lineup.
The first thing you'll notice is what a beautiful, well-designed object this is. The Yeti has a solid custom desk stand that provides a bit of built-in cable management for headphone and USB cords. Despite its outdoorsy name, the Yeti is not the ideal choice for recording in the wild -- it's really big and heavy. That said, the swivel-stand arrangement allows you to rotate the body of the mic upside down into the base if you do need portability. (Unlike Blue's higher end studio mics, no travel box or road case is included, but at this price point, that's not a surprise.)
On the front: a mic mute button and headphone volume dial. On the rear, mic level control and a pickup pattern selector. The dials are just a bit jiggly and plasticky for such an otherwise elegant design. On the bottom are the zero-latency headphone jack and mini-USB connector. The swiveling body makes accessing the USB and headphone ports a snap. Another thoughtful addition down-under is a 5/8 inch threaded hole that allows you to remove the base and mount the Yeti on a standard microphone floor stand.
The Yeti houses a trio mic elements to offer stereo, omnidirectional, cardioid, and figure-eight pickup patterns. The selections give the mic a versatile bag of sound tricks, whether you're recording a solo podcast, taping an interview or meeting, or laying down some vocals in GarageBand. The headphone amp doesn't exactly go to 11, but the mic delivers a pretty respectable output level. We're talking 16-bit USB audio, so the Yeti doesn't have quite the full warmth and sonic detail of a "real" large-diaphragm condenser like Blue's pro studio models, but the sound is surprisingly good for a USB mic, with much less noise than similarly-featured competitors like the Samson G-Track.
No drivers needed -- just plug in the included USB cable. On a Mac, select "Yeti Stereo Microphone" for both input and output in the Sound control panel of System Preferences. Configuring Yeti in GarageBand's Audio preferences is a snap, too.
To avoid P-pops and breath sounds when working up-close, you might want to invest in a pop screen of some kind, though it seems a shame to put a big foam hat on top of such a beautiful head.
Did we mention how cool The Yeti looks sitting on your desk? The streamlined aluminum styling matches the finish of Apple's current product lineup quite well.
The Yeti's sound quality and multiple pickup patterns raise the bar for USB mics, and leave even Blue's much-beloved Snowball playing catchup. For the price, a product that looks and sounds this good is going to be pretty hard to beat. Highly recommended. Blue Microphones Yeti USB Microphone
The latest addition to my desktop is the most flexible recording device I've yet found: The Blue Microphones Yeti USB Microphone. Long known for their line of high-end condenser microphones, Blue is increasingly known for their computer-ready USB microphones, like the Snowflake and the Snowball, and the Yeti is their latest and certainly greatest computer-ready microphone yet.
Advertised as the first fully THX-compliant (a standard devised by Lucasfilms) microphone, the Yeti is a large (12" tall on its removable stand), hefty, multi-pattern microphone suitable for recording, podcasting, or any other computer-related audio activity. It features four switchable patterns- omni, carodid, figure eight, and stereo- a built in headphone amplifier, gain control, headpohone volume, and a mute button. For even more flexibility you can remove it from its desk stand and mount it on a standard 5/8"microphone stand or boom.
And it sounds great, too- even better than their well-regarded Snowball series. I've been using it for recording music practice, building tracks with Audacity on my Windows and linux boxes, and with Apple's GarageBand, and making calls with Skype. The ability to record in full stereo or mono is a real plus. Up to now I've been using a variety of microphones together with various microphone preamps and an A/D converters- a mass of cables and power supplies that bad enough on the desk, but a real hassle when trying to use with a laptop away from home. The Yeti has it all in one package. It may not sound quite as good as a multi-thousand dollar condenser microphone and vacuum tube preamp, but for the money it simply can't be beat.
I purchased this mic from Amazon recently and am absolutely impressed with the sound quality. The package came in way faster than expected under the free shipping arrangement plus Amazon had a great price on it. :-)
The mic at first looks big and kinda heavy - once you get over that - you connect it to your favorite laptop or desktop and start your trials.
I tried several different combos - from close to the mic to singing from a distance of about 2-3 feet - using the 4 polar patterns - and in each case could hear the difference in the sound output in crispness and depth. For the first time ever, I liked my own voice from a mic!
Ease-of-use : The desktop stand provided with the mic is ideal only for podcasts or speech based recordings. For singing vocals, I'd recommend getting a mic stand along with shock mount. The mic itself has very easy controls and the convenience of a headphone jack from the mic itself is a big advantage (plus the huge advantage of 0 latency of output to the headphones). The mute button is just a click away. Once you set the gain level and polar pattern in the back side of the mic, you are set. I prefer using either the cardioid mode or the stereo mode for singing vocals.
Sound quality : At 48khz sampling rate 16 bit mode, this is fairly high quality - studio recording mics typically range in the 96 Khz sampling at 32 bit mode but in the end what matters is the audio playback equipment's ablities - most receivers run at 48Khz. The frequency response range is impressive - 20 hz to 20 khz - most cardioid mics in this price range have a smaller range between 50hz and 15Khz - makes a big difference in the crispness, depth and quality of sound capture. The sensitivity of the mic is another measure of its quality - 4.5mV/Pa at 1 Khz is another indication of high sensitivity at 1 Pa (pascal) - it has a high ratio of sound waves at the diaphragm converting to electrical signals. The Max Sound Pressure Level (SPL) at 120db refers to the pressure the mic can take at less than 1 inch from the mic to the performer's mic before it distorts and at a THD (total harmonic distortion) ratio of 0.5% at 1 Khz this mic is a great bargain. Most other mics in this range have standard 74 to 94 db max SPL. Many manufacturers use different measures to depict sensitivity and this is often very confusing.
Ease of thread mount to a stand - I had trouble finding a mic stand that can handle the wider thread mount (typically found in European mics) - most thread mounts are smaller so I needed to get an adapter from Guitar Center.
Hope you find this review helpful - [...] - Usb Microphone - Blue Microphones - Microphone - Mic'
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Digital Camera - memory card, sd card
Not a whole lot to say when it comes to memory cards, either they work or they don't :-) These work, and they work very well. I didn't expect that they would be the speedy class 2 (there are speedier cards, but you need a corresponding device capable of those speeds to make use of them), but was pleasantly surprised. In my Panasonic FZ7 camera, these capture and record pictures at the same speed as my 1GB SanDisk Ultra II SD card. SanDisk 2 GB SD Flash Memory Card 2-Pack SDSDB2-2048-A11
I purchased SanDisk 2-pack 2GB SD memory disk. Used them in our recent trip to Europe. Cheaper than others by SanDisk (such as Extreme III) and worked very well with my camera (Canon G9). I was very happy with them. Highly recommended for point and shoot cameras.
I bought this SD 2GB 2-pack for use with a new Pentax Optio W60 camera. I opted for the class 2 cards instead of the faster class 4 or 6 because Pentax told me there would not be any noticeable difference in read and write speed with the class 4 or 6 cards. It seems that the camera's read and write speed is limited by its own internal hardware. I found this to be true with the Pentax W60 and I assume it is true with others as well. I was able to save by taking advantage of SuperSaver shipping by buying from Amazon whose shipping and delivery speed is way faster than the other sellers whose total price including shipping may be only slightly lower. I'd rather buy from Amazon than "Joe S**t, the rag man."
I ordered the 2 2gb sandisk memory cards and neither one worked, would only let me load 145 pictures on either yet showed I had loads of room left on disk just won't load. then would give me errors...and my camera couldnt even recognize the disks. a big rip off as I was buying it for photo frames for my sons graduation present to load all his college photos on. - Sandisk - Memory Card - Sd Card - Sd Memory Card'
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Media Storage - cd wallet, case logic
I like accessories that are functional and really work as they were intended and designed. Such is the case with this product. It holds CDs securely and safely. There is also room for accompanying booklets, manuals and the like. This CD Wallet is well thought out, functional and very durable. Case Logic KSW-64 72 Capacity CD/DVD Prosleeve Wallet (Black)
I bought a version of this wallet 2 years ago to transport DVDs back to Japan with me and avoid lugging a ton of DVD cases through airports. I liked the wallet a lot, so I ordered another one recently. While the construction and quality inside the wallet don't appear to have changed, the condition of the leather-like cover seems to have gone down, as has the quality of the zipper (it now has just a nylon tag attached to it instead of a Koskin tab) and the board used to firm up the cover. The result is a flimsier feeling product. Won't be buying this on-line again as the product I received is different from the one in the photo (that one looks more like the first case I bought). Appearances aside, the case does fulfill its purpose.
This is a quality, easy to insert/remove DVD, zip closed, and store unit. Well made and looks good too. I trashed all my other cheap unusable wallets, and replaced them with this unit. My search is over..
I got this CD wallet awhile ago and continue to use it at capacity for my Karaoke CD's. The case holds its shape and stands up like a book in a shelf even when full of CDs. The CDs themselves are easy to put in and take out and are not scratched by the backing in the holder. The pages are good quality and I haven't noticed any tearing of the sleeves. Highly recommended!
When I had the only computer in the house, keeping software organized was easy. Once I got PCs for the kids though, each with different software, hardware drivers, and operating systems installed, things got a little trickier. These CD wallets are a perfect solution. They hold all your system's CDs and DVDs, contain pockets in the front (the "fast file") which will hold CDs in their sleeves (in case you don't want to copy down the software key and keep track of it separately) or small instruction booklets, and there's room in the back to keep your loose documentation. These wallets are high quality, durable, and an excellent value for the price. Buy one for each computer you own!
I've actually had a couple bad cd cases in my life (one of the worst was where the protective covering kept scratching the cd's, ouch!) but this one works really well. It's durable and there's a lot of room for your cd's/dvd's/video games. Mine isn't very full at the moment, so I can't say how it handles when it's completely full. If you need a case, this one is a good deal and it seems like it will last a really long time too.
Simple leather finish, thick plastic sleeves (which is a good thing considering thin ones stretch/rip over time)And the overall binding it strong so that pages wont fall out (this is actually my 3rd case of this exact kind, all from amazon over the past 3 years) Now I have one for PC games, 360 and PS3. I recomend if you need it for a smaller, and as a sidenote, I own 2 of the massive (300+) cases, which are just as good.
I have been using this for a couple of weeks. It has a section on the front inside cover that holds about 12 CD's. I use this for my books on CD and the rest for my music CD's. I read the review of another person and liked their ideas about this so I used it myself. I cut out the cover from the CD that shows what songs are in the CD and put it next to the CD. That way I can easily see what the CD is with the songs on each CD. I could only fit in 36 CD's that way but I didn't have that many so it worked well for me. The zipper is a little hard to get started when you try to close it. It takes two hands which makes it a little inconvenient if you are trying to drive. I just leave it open and zip it close when I stop.
There's nothing fancy about this CD wallet. It does a fine job of holding CDs. It is solid with standard sleeve sheets inside. If you are wanting a simple and functional wallet to hold 72 CDs, you needn't worry that this one will be inferior. - Case Logic - Dvd Case - Cd Cases - Cd Wallet'
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Waste Of Money
This glove is a complete waste of money. The cuff border is already coming apart. The fingers and writst lengths are short. Do NOT buy. I would have wanted to know that the clipless curling iron comes with a great glove.
Heat Resistant Glove
Having only one glove is not so useful. I need to switch gloves each time I want to curl with the opposite side. This glove is woven, which means you can still feel the heat through and between the open woven parts, making my palms and fingers uncomfortably hot and sweaty.
Heat Resistant Glove
Elephant Deals was contracted by Amazon to send me the glove. They said that it was undeliverable but I have never had a problem with receiving anything. I got a refund but still was charged for the shipped and handling. When I asked them why the product was undeliverable they said that they could not tell me.
Heat Resistant Glove
I just bought this glove and on the first look it looks cheap and just like so many other winter gloves that I have in my dresser. I tried it on and the heat of the curler (I have a Conair CD117 curler) was still way too big to handle. I had to add two more gloves to make any difference, and this time the gloves were just normal gloves.
Wouldn't recommend this to anyone, a total waste of my bucks.
Heat Resistant Glove
DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT! I bought it with the tourmaline baby curler thinking it will help with the heat of the curler. For $13.00 it is just a waste of money. Don't be fooled - it is not at all heat-resistant.
Heat Resistant Glove
I bought this glove thinking I would be able to wrap my hair around the curling iron and then grab and hold the hair on the curling iron. You don't feel the heat for the first couple of seconds but it will become extremely hot and painful. Not what I thought would happen with this glove.
Heat Resistant Glove
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Compact Digital Projector
As a retired professor volunteering in a senior citizen's program, I must tote what I need to teach cultural history. That includes equipment to show films and images and to play reasonable quality recorded music, as well as to lecture. The LG HS201 is ideal for my purposes. With 200 lumens it is the first LED projector that I have seen that is sufficiently bright and that has a usable built-in stereo sound system, although I do augment its meager 2 watts with external speakers. The USB port facilitates set-up and frees me from a tangle of cables, as I can easily put a couple of slightly compressed movies, an hour of MP3 classical music, and nearly 100 JPEG images onto an 8GB flash drive. The fan noise is barely audible--an estimated 29 DB--and at under 2 lbs. the projector is truly portable.
Most of its purported shortcomings are no more than compromises necessary to bring a lamp-free projector to market at a $500 price. For that figure, one should not expect a zoom lens, a tilt adjustment, or anything like a theater sound system. Incidentally, only the HS 200G and HS201G, neither of which is currently marketed in the USA, offer a standard carrying bag, and just the HS200 series, also not yet sold here, includes an FM audio transmitter. However, there is one LG HS201 defect that can and should be remedied at the earliest opportunity. The owner's manual is written in the unidiomatic English of a non-native speaker, and some of the manual's technical writing defies comprehension. A newly edited version would be helpful.
If you are interested in buying the LG HS201, I would suggest four accessories at first: (a) a USB flash drive of 8 or 16GB; (b) a lightweight tripod, rated at over 6 lbs; (c) a pair of small speakers; and (d) a carrying bag. With these, you should be good to go! LG HS201 Slim LED Front Projector
So LED projectors are much easier to maintain than normal projectors. Not having to be careful about letting the lamp cool is great. But LED's are dim. Nothing on the order of Pico Projectors, but right on the edge of affecting the projector's usefulness. This is the first LED Projector I have owned and I can say that the colored LED's as the light source provides a really rich, vivid color to the image. As compared to a bright white light shown through a filter wheel on a traditional DLP projector, the LED's in the Phlatlight Chipset make the most out of the limited amount of light they produce by providing better than neccessary color depth that makes the image seem brighter than it probably is. And among all LED Projectors this LG model is currently the brightest. Although there is a limit to how brightly lit a room can be, while still leaving an enjoyable image from the LG HS201, daytime viewability is very adequate with this projector. Each generation of products based on these Phlatlight chipsets is better than the last. Whereas the Dell and Acer palmtop LED projectors from two years ago may have been too dim to accept, this model finally makes the grade and needs make no excuses for what it is. It is cool, quiet, light-weight, rugged and it provides a relatively bright and highly saturated image in a room with some lighting. However, as the room lights are dimmed the image does of course become more enjoyable.
Benq's GP1 is a great machine with color corrections built in (for projecting on a colored wall) as well as key stone adjustments and is a great effort. However, the BenQ is built around a 100 lumen Phatlight LED chipset where as this LG uses a 200 Lumen Phatlight LED chipset. That makes all the difference. Also, LG should get some credit for responding to the complaints that were made about all of the different manufacturers last-generation LED Projectors. Most notably the touch controls used by Samsung, BenQ, and previously LG are now replaced by regular backlit buttons which provide a normal tactile feedback while navigating the menus. Also, there is relatively no lag in navigating the menus. Those two things led to nightmarish controls on many last generation Samsung and Benq projectors. Here all works as it should. Secondly, LG utilizes a small, light weight AC Adapter on the HS201 instead of the giant monster power bricks from the previous models that almost weighed more than the projectors that they powered.
I can not say too many times that this model is what every LED projector should haver been all along. Aside from the slight rainbow tinge when you glance across the screen (which some people never even notice) this projector is as good as an LED DLP unit can be, until Luminus starts building affordable chipsets of at least double this lumen output. The fact that this is a third generation product shows in how well baked the whole experience is. At $500 these projectors are worth at least the asking price.
This is my 5th projector. I am a long time user that has had various projectors since 1995. My last couple of projectors were both Epson and because I like a bright picture I would run Presentation mode towards the end of the bulb life and the bulbs would wear out in about 2000 hours.
After reading reviews all over the Internet about the LG LED projector I took a chance on it knowing the resolution would not be as high as my previous projectors. I had a budget this time of $900 and after looking at how much bulb replacement is every year and a half I decided to try it. If the LED projector was not good enough I would use it for HDTV viewing only and for DVD movies I would install another projector next to it just for movies.
Out of the box I was blown away by how bright and rich the colors are on this LED projector. 200 Lumens can be watched during the day in a windowed room as long as blinds are used. Where the projector really shines is at night where you get the kind of colors you are use to seeing on a plasma. LED is definitely the future. The color adjustment will take you a good day to figure out how to adjust. I was using some presets from AVForum users but it really comes down to tweaking it for a nice mixture of both TV and DVD.
The throw on this projector is great, I actually moved it forward a foot from my old ceiling mount location and the picture is larger on the screen then it was with my last Epson projector. I am running a screen that is 156" Diagonal so if I was willing to have a smaller screen size this projector would probably be bright enough for watching tv during the day in a windowed room.
My favorite part of this projector is the color, LED life on the bulb of 30,000 hours plus, and the very large picture. It is much better than I was expecting and I am not purchasing another projector unless it is a LED with the improvements listed below.
Improvements needed:
720P would make a big difference.
Screen door effect can be seen on white and within text on anything over an 80" screen.
Brightness, perfect at night but would like to see it be a little bit brighter for viewing during the day.'
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Compact Digital Projector Compact Digital Projector Compact Digital Projector
Bluetooth - bluetooth stereo, bluetooth
This device works well. All those who say range is crap etc simply don't know or understand bluetooth application. If you use it with a laptop built-in bluetooth or a mobile phone, then range will be short because the laptop or mobile bluetooth is for connecting to devices in the immediate proximity to your work area. Thats why it's called PAN - Personal Area Network.
If you want to use it with increased distance, get a class I (class 1) USB dongle rated for 100 meters. You will not have any trouble.
I have validated it first hand - my HP laptop's built-in BT cuts off all the time if more then 2 meters (6 feet) away. My ipod and iphone work nicely to about 5 meters (15 feet). A cheap billionton class 1 dongle doesn't cut off even at 10 meters (30 feet) and a belkin class 1 usb dongle even works at 12 meters (36 feet) with one concrete wall between.
Another advantage I find useful is that it supports multiple device pairing, I just leave it powered and once you 'disconnect' one device you can 'connect' a different one.
The device is powered by a 5V/0.2A universal (100V-240V) adapter and remembers my paired devices even after disconnecting and reconnecting power.
Audio quality is as good as any other A2DP bluetooth audio device. They all use the SBC (Low Complexity Subband Codec) bluetooth protocol which limits bandwidth to 512 kbit/s - which allows to enjoy sounds similar to a 256 kbit/s stereo mp3 file. Old Version of Belkin F8Z492 Bluetooth Music Receiver for iPod and iPhone (Black)
I purchased both the Belkin Bluetooth Reciever and the BluBridge Receiver from two different locations and was going to return the one that I liked the least. So here is a very quick comparison. In the testing I also had one of my friends give his opinion as well. Here is what we both thought:
Belkin Bluetooth Reciever
Sound Quality: Amazing/Excellent 10/10- sounds just as good if not better than standard wired 3.5mm audio connection
Range: 8/10 Line of sight maybe 20-25ft, although I hear that this also depends on your transmitter, I was using Lenovo s10-3t netbook integrated bluetooth and Iphone 3GS integrated bluetooth as source.
Connectability Ease: 10/10, once you have paired it, it stays plugged in to the wall next to your stereo. Example: I turned off my Lenovo s10-3t netbook, the blue light went out on the belkin receiver showing disconnect, I turned the netbook on a day later, immediately I notice the belkin blue light come back on the belkin receiver, and the connect is so fast that the windows 7 startup sound/chime came in through my stereo. Obviously if you connect your computer to a different bluetooth audio device, you will have to later tell it to reconnect to the belkin. But the whole process is super smooth.
Portability: NOT PORTABLE, stays plugged in to wall, this is also a PLUS, because it always stays very ready for easy connect.
BluBridge 3.5mm Mini-Jack Rx - Receiver
Sound Quality: Excellent 9.8/10, wired and the belkin bluetooth sound were slightly better, it was more of a slightly fuller/richer, slightly louder sound with the belkin or wired connection. Note: it is only very slightly better sound. My friend and I could only tell the difference when we used the same song, same sound source connecting back and forth very quickly. In the BluBridge's defence it produces 9.8/10 sound whether on battery power or connected to usb charging.
Range: 9/10 Line of sight maybe 25-30ft, basically I got an additional 5ft of range from the same bluetooth transmitters. The signal did seem stronger, when I would start to reach the max, the signal would break and then regain clear again for 3-4 more feet if the transmitter was stable. With the belkin as soon as the signal started to break, the signal was gone.
Connectability Ease: 8/10, this is mainly because the unit has a battery power saver that shuts off the device when not in use. So you have to hold down the button on the unit for 7 seconds, then connect with your device (Iphone 3GS or Lenovo s10-3t netbook)
Portability: Extremely and Easily Portable 10/10. I use it off of battery power mostly, I have it plugged into my Harman Kardon Go + Play High-Performance Portable Loudspeaker System with Dock for iPod (Newest Model) which can also operate off of battery power (8-D-cell batteries). Makes for a excellent portable sound source.
Testing: Used the Belkin RockStar 5-Way 3.5-mm Headphone Splitter (White) with Harmon Kardon Go and Play, 2 computer inputs, Belkin bluetooth input, and BluBridge bluetooth input, and Logitech Z-2300 THX-Certified 2.1 Speaker System with Subwoofer. Everything was connected at once and audio was crystal clear, from anysource, this really speaks volumes for the Belkin rockstar. And if your wondering, yes I did play the movie "Gone in 60 seconds" from my HTPC throught the belkin rockstar outputing to both the Logitech z-2300 speakers and the Harmon Kardon Go and PLay at the same time, sounded really good.
Before Very Close scrutinizing side by side testing, I thought I was going to be returning the Belkin, because the range was about 5ft less, and it wasn't portable. And playing with them separately 20min apart I nor my friend could tell a difference in the sound Quality, so it is very slight. But I ended up keeping them both. I recomend the Belkin if you have a stationary high end stereo system and have no need for bluetooth portability with your stereo system. Other wise I recomend the BluBridge 3.5mm receiver if you think you might ever want to hook it up to portable stereo. The Ease of connectiblity at the end of the day with the belkin is what made me keep it.
They are both EXCELLENT PRODUCTS, read details so see which fits your need better, I found a need for both.
PS: at the end of the testing my friend said he is going to buy the BluBridge bluetooth receiver, he like it because the sound quality was still excellent, it was portable, and he liked the look of it. - Bluetooth Stereo - A2dp - Ipad - Bluetooth'
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Usb Audio - external sound card, usb
I've seen plenty of good reviews for this thing, but frankly you'd think they were written by employees of the manufacturer. The card plugs in easily into a USB port, but it just hangs there flimsily and unsupported, ready to break your jack at the slightest application of force. So be careful. Also, I used mine for two days before it just quit working. This was due to the fact that this is one of those devices suffering from collapsed button disorder. There are two mute buttons at the top/front of the device, for muting either the speakers or a mic. This entire button will collapse into the device itself without any excess of pressure, and it cannot be raised without risking breaking the device itself by jamming a thin piece of metal into the groove to lift it back out. I fixed my own button, but at that point the thing just stopped working. So don't be fooled by the price and get something a little nicer, and a little sturdier. I mean jeez, what does it take to get dependable stuff these days instead of disposable junk that doesn't even work? Hosed again. 7.1 Channel USB External Sound Card Audio Adapter
The adapter is as easy as it gets to use right out of the box and worked well as a substitute to my faulty laptop headphone jack, but the quality of the device itself is very poor. I have had mine for a month or so and it has fallen apart completely. Upon receipt, I noticed that the outer case was already separating, and within a couple of weeks the headphone contacts began to disconnect so I had to continually find the "sweet spot" to get any audio to come out of the headphones. As cheap as it was, it served as a good experiment but it is not something that I will waste my time or money on again.
We bought this to evaluate its suitability as a headset adapter for use with Skype on Macintosh. We found that it is inferior in all respects to a similar product by the same manufacturer, the Syba SD-CM-UAUD USB Stereo Audio Adapter, C-Media Chipset, RoHS. Avoid this 7.1 version and get the simpler one for the same price that lacks the chintzy buttons, has correct color coding, a smaller and shorter housing, better build quality, and is better identified in OS X.
As other commenters have noted, the exterior buttons are very flimsy and do feel like they could break with a strong push. Their only function is to send a signal to the computer to change the software volume level, which can also be easily done using the volume control in the operating system or via the keyboard if it has multimedia buttons. On many computers the USB ports are inaccessible anyway, so why bother adding these cheap buttons that weaken the whole case, when many people can't even reach them?
The jacks are color coded in yellow and black, not the standard pink and green that headset jacks use. For what possible reason? Yellow plastic was cheaper? They are also labeled with tiny icons that are very hard to tell apart, and the labels are not next to the jacks but on the top face with all the buttons.
The USB plug on our unit is angled off-center, again suggesting shoddy construction.
On the plus side - it does work as advertised. Although the device is identified as "Unknown USB Audio Device" by OS X, it does input and output sound fine, and loudly. The chipset is advertised on the box as the C-Media CM119, and it's a USB 2.0 device. The "virtual 7.1" gimmick appears to be "3d surround sound" software by Xear, which comes on a mini-CD and is Windows only. I think it's safe to say this is basically a non-feature.
It would be a marginally acceptable solution to using a headset with a Mac or other computer that lacks a headphone jack, but again the similar yet entirely superior Syba SD-CM-UAUD USB Stereo Audio Adapter is a far better choice. See my review of that device on its product page for more info.
I've had 7.1 USB sound card for two weeks now and it works fantastically on my Labtop. It not only replaced my labtop sub-par internal speakers but it also replaced its broken 3.5 headjack on my labtop, which was a huge plus for me. I tested this sound card with some really cheap headphones and I have to say I'm really impressed by the sound quality. On every application I used this sound card with, it worked on every one of them (WMP 11, GOM, [...], etc.). I love this sound card so much I really recommend it. Although I didn't find a use for the CD software it came with, I can forgive that.
This is currently shipping **withöut** the sofware CD indicated in the Product Description, which states:
"Package Includes:
1 x 7.1 Channel External USB Audio Sound Card Adapter --
1 x Software Disc for Xear 3D"
Nor does the software seem to be available for download on the Internet.
I brought this product because my on-board sound card had gone bad. At first, the item worked fine but it was a bit flimsily! It worked for at least a week then just completely fell apart! I was very angry! I will never buy this item again! I highly recommend from purchasing it! LOOK ELSE WHERE!!
This sound card work better than I expected to for the price. I had a notebook computer with a broken headphone jack and no sound was working from the speakers either. I bought this card for $9.95 and got better and cleaner sound than I ever had from the computer. But wait that's not all, my daughter was doing voiceovers on another computer for a video project. The mic was plugged into the computer and noise was being recorded with her voice. We plugged in this unit to the mic and the computer and we got a super clean and loud recording. I think I am going to buy 2 more just to have them as spares because they are so cheap and work so well.
The sound is very good. The recording quality is excellent. In fact, it is better than the iMic that I bought for more than 30 bucks more than a year ago. It looks reasonably sturdy. It is rather thick so it may obstruct the adjoining USB port(s). All in all, you can't go wrong with this nice little sound card. - Usb Audio - Usb - Laptop - External Sound Card'
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50 Inch - 720p, hdtv
I ordered this from Amazon for $694 and I got $10 off with a coupon I had plus the shipping was free and they brought it right up into my apartment so all I had to do was install it. The install is very simple just screw it into the stand, plug in all the wires and then there is an automated setup process so you just pick your options along the way.
The stand feels very secure, it's a big black platform about 2'x1.5' with steal rods that go up inside the TV and screw in, there are 3 screws in each rod that connect it to the platform and 2 in each that connect it to the TV. I was able to do all that by myself but just barely and I'm a pretty big guy so considering the size and weight of the TV it should be at least a 2 man job.
If you get the version with the built in Ethernet adapter you can connect to your Netflix, Pandora, Napster and a number of other sites to watch or listen to whatever you want.
Then of course the inputs, 2 HDMI, an SD Card reader, 1xRCA and 1xRCAHD, of course read the specs carefully because there are different versions of this same TV (i.e. one version with an Ethernet adapter and 1 without and there might be one that is also 3D ready but it might be more expensive then the one I'm reviewing)
The color and picture are beautiful, I play a lot of video games so picture quality was important to me, if you're a gamer this TV is for you. I play halo on Xbox 360 and one of my biggest issues was ghosting (when you look around too quickly and everything blurs) with this TV that issue is almost completely taken care of, there is still some blur but it's extremely mild.
As for the picture quality being 720p...well there a lot of people who will say a lot of stuff when it comes to the differences between 720p, 1080p, 720i and 1080i and I can only speak from experience but I do have a 23" computer monitor that is 1080p and I tried to play the same things on there that I did on the TV (and I have a very good computer with a high end graphics card) and yes I know it isn't a perfect test but it's the best I could do and from what I could tell there was very little difference. So in my opinion for the size, quality and price it's a very good deal.
The only real problem with it that I've noticed so far is that if you get too close things look...grainy almost like you can see black spots everywhere on it however if you are even 1ft away you can't see them at all and considering it's 50" I hope you're sitting at least 1ft away lol. Panasonic VIERA TC-P50X3 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV
This is my 2nd Panasonic plasma display and the quality of the picture is absolutely great. This TV gets 4 stars because the display has a glossy finish and not a matte finish. This matters in any room that has windows or lamps. You'll see the reflection of these light sources on the TV screen. Honestly I have no idea why anyone would want a glossy screen over a matte screen.
This is a 720p resolution TV, which is why the price seems low for a 50 inch TV. 1080p sounds great but in reality most folks are not watching _true_ 1080p content. Even with a lot of bluray content, the original content was a lower resolution (often DVD 480p) and it was simply rescanned into 1080p for the bluray disk. If you really want a 1080p TV, go for it of course. There is some true 1080p content out there and it looks great if you have a 1080p TV.
I purchased the P50X3 over a month ago so now I can give a fair review. Overall, for the price of the TV and size (50'), you can't get much better then this. I own another Panasonic Plasma (400U) and to compare picture quality, pretty much on par. The fact its 720p really makes no difference IMO. I play Blu Ray movies and unless you are completely picky about minute subtle differences, you really can't tell a difference. I have not yet had a chance to hook up this TV to my network for use with Netflix, but I have used my laptop with Netflix via HDMI and the quality of video is decent. My only "issues" with the TV is there is a slight glare I can notice at times. However, this is somewhat dependent on the location of my TV in the room with light and windows. My other "knock" is the sound quality compared to my other older Panasonic. My 400U Panasonic had amazing sound and I was hoping for similar sound with this TV. Now, I'm not saying the sound is bad, but it doesn't compare to my older model. It is still good (7 out of 10) versus (10 out of 10) of the other. In conclusion, if you are looking for a large HDTV for under $800, I would recommend this TV.
Thanks Amazon, for doing such a great job with my most recent purchase. I had never bought anything so large and costly by mail before, but now I'm a believer! Fast free delivery and outstanding price. The TV works fantastic and all my friends were quite impressed with how flawless this order was filled and delivered. The picture quality is very good and the TV looks well built. Lots of features that are on more expensive models are on this model as well. I'm a very satisfied customer and I wont hesitate next time I'm looking for a large item and I want the best deal in town.
TV was as described. Original one came with a broken screen however delivery crew repackaged and shipped back to amazon at no charge. Received a refund and reordered. Second TV came and works great!
My toddler loves >and I mean LOVES< watching all his HD pre-school shows on this big screen. The colors are very bright, the image sharp and the sound is superb. It has a media menu that I found to be very useful considering that I enjoy listening to Pandora radio, watching movies on Netflix and so forth I dont even need my computer to access all these pages I can sign up directly from my TV without the need of extra cables whatsoever :) Very nice!
I purchased my set in June, 2011 it's the beginning of September now and my set has worked for maybe three weeks altogether.
I had a TIVO HD connected to HDMI 1 and my computer to HDMI 2. These were the same connections that I used successfully on a Sony TV for three years. I worked fine for two weeks and then it stopped. I called Panasonic Service and they sent out a repair crew (from Tampa..a 200 mile round trip instead of using a local repair firm) and they told me that the main board had burned out. They said that Panasonic would send the replacement board to me and when I got it to call them and they would come back to install it...which they did.
One week later the main board burned out again. Now Panasonic has the nerve to tell me that it is my TIVO unit that is burning out the boards. They say that it is very common for any cable box or satellite receiver to burn out HDMI sockets. They said that they would replace the board this time but my warranty would be void after that. I was told to call a local repair company for service. The new company came and picked up my set to repair. They called me a week later and told me that Panasonic had changed their mind and would not pay for the repair and if I wanted it done it would cost me almost $400. I told them not to do the repair and they said that I still owed them $60. I will pay them the $60 just for the satisfaction on taking a hammer to that piece of junk.
In the mean time I had hooked up a 32" Sanyo that I moved from our kitchen with the same connections and again they worked fine. They are still working fine today. The problem is NOT with my TIVO unit. The problem is with the Panasonic set...and with Panasonic employees.
My advice....stay away from Panasonic products. Their customer service sucks!!! - 720p - Plasma - Panasonic 50 Inch Plasma - Hdtv'
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Canon Camera Accessories - canon g10, canon
Made of cheap plastic, this is actually a TWO-PIECE affair with a 57mm (odd-size) thread in the middle.All the plastic adapters I have owned stripped, cross-threaded or got loose threaded in no time, Canon has doubled your chances by making it two pieces that screw together.The worst part is that when they do eventually cross-thread, your heart stops for a second as you check the camera body to make sure it did not cross-thread.You can buy a metal alternative at [...]. Canon LA-DC58K Conversion Lens Adapter for Canon G10 & G11 Digital Cameras
Unsuitable for filters, because of vignetting at wide angles and insufficient length for full telephoto extension of the lens. Should work fine with the Canon 1.4x tele adapter. For filters, consider the Lensmate alternative.
The Canon LA-DC58K Adapter for the G10 is a waste of money. The thing rattles due to improper fit when mounted, it's a two-piece(who knows why) plactic adapter that when put to it's designed use, attaching a 58mm filter, vinettes severly at standard zoom range. Canon is,in my opinion, falling behind other manufactures in quality, and now appearently, in design engineeering as well. Too bad.
For some reason Canon has forgotten that the G10 is a flagship product, and released this "accessory." While I can understand the need for two pieces to some degree, the workmanship, materials, and limitations it imposes upon the camera are all unacceptable. The plastic itself is flimsy and too flexible, and I suspect will become brittle in cold temperatures. The limitations imposed by this adapter are the worst part-full zoom range is not available, and severe vignetting occurs at wide angle. Third party products are available for a higher price that are made of metal, and offer a larger filter diameter to avoid vignetting and are longer to allow full zoom range. Let's hope this product is just an exception, rather than the rule when it comes to Canon's new accessories.
I purchased this accessory for the sole purpose of being able to use my extensive filter system with this camera. I normally shoot with a DSLR and the screw thread size on all my filters, as well as close-up lenses, is 77mm.
After attaching a 58mm to 77mm step up ring, all of my regularly used filters easily attached. There is a catch, however. The mere adding of the conversion adapter will create vignetting at the widest focal length settings on the zoom range. So you're going to loose the 28mm focal length. It's going to be more like a 35mm after zooming in far enough to eliminate the vignetting.
I plan to overcome this limitation by shooting multi-image panorama shots with the camera in a vertical position. I can then control how wide I want the image and the longer focal length (35mm or higher) actually reduces the distortion that is occasioned by wider angle focal lengths, making the panorama look more realistic.
I was also successful in attaching my Canon 500D close-up lens. Vignetting is not a problem here as you are using the longer end of the zoom range for close-ups. Generally speaking, at the maximum optical zoom, this close-up lens allowed me to focus about 5 inches closer to the subject and it more than doubled its size on the LDC screen as compared the closest focusing point without a close-up lens.
Despite the limitations, this accessory still permits one to extend the potential of this camera by permitting the use of filters and close up lenses.
I recently got this with my G10 and confirm everything negative that everyone here says about it ,.. A MUCH better alternative are the products available thru [...]
they explain what works and what does not and what you need to achieve a given result,.. I have purchased replacement parts thru them and Im very pleased,.. the Canon part is simply sub-par dont waist your money.
As far as Amazon goes they were GREAT as always speedy ontime delivery at a great price.
It really bothers me that Canon does not put filter threads on their top of the line point and shoots. Its even more troubling that they would design such a horrid solution to that problem, that of the LA-DC58K.
There are multiple problems with the LA-DC58K. First its plastic which means the overall quality is much lower than the other options on the market, besides plastic threads are never a good idea as they wear down with time making it harder and harder to properly screw things in as it ages. This simply doesn't happen with brass or aluminum threads. The biggest problem with the LA-DC58K is that it doesn't fit soundly on the camera. Once installed it should be 100 movement free, in other words it should have a nice sound fit and that just isn't what you get with the LA-DC58K. It rattles around and is completely unstable once fitted in the camera and this is simply inexcusable. As if this wasn't enough you also get severe vignetting at wide angles and the tube isn't long enough thus it restricts full zoom ability. I honestly have absolutely no clue how this accessory was allowed to go to market in its current condition.
I know it may seem unbelievable that Canon could design an accessory for one of its flagship models that has this many problems but believe it as everything I wrote is 100% accurate. I am one of the unfortunate people that ordered the LA-DC58K. It was absolutely horrid and was boxed up and returned after less than an hour of use. With that being said, there is another company out there that makes a very high quality aluminum lens tube that will allow you to use either 58 or 72mm filters with both the G10 and G-11. Unfortunately I am not able to give you that name as its against Amazon policy to give you this info as they don't sell it themselves. Just Google G10 aluminum lens tube and you should easily find the company I am talking about. It starts with an L and ends with an e.
Bottom line - Do not buy this!!!!!! - Canon G10 - Canon Camera Accessories - Canon - Lens Accessories'
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Usb Extension Cable - usb cable, usb cables
Considering how bad the iPhone's battery life is, I am surprised Apple gave such a small chord to charge it, since you'd need to use it while charging so much.
I got this to fix that issue. Now I have nice long charging chord for my iPhone USB 2.0 Extension Cable Type A Male to Type A Female 6 ft, Black
Got two of these about a year ago. They work great as long as you tie it into another line that isn't too long. I never had a single problem with these in the year I used them. I just need more of them as now I have more tech in my house.
Just as simple as it seems! Remember if you are trying to go quite a distance, your USB cable needs to be less than 15' total or else you risk losing signal. So a 15' cable with a 4' printer cable (for example) would ut you at 19' and it probably wont work correctly. Thanks!
It got the stars mainly due to price. It works, but you get what you pay for.
The fact that USB extension cords in general have given my workspace much more flexibility is wonderful perhaps needs to separated from this review. Next time will probably splurge a few bucks more for one with more consistent functionality.
I bought two. One for the keyboard, one for mouse. The one for the keyboard kept losing the connection despite double and triple checks that things were in fact connected. I would randomly hear the 'ding' you get when you unplug/plug something from the USB slots. It really puts a cramp in your writing style if your keyboard disconnects every few minutes. The disconnection glitch lasts a second, sometimes more. That I could tolerate on the mouse since I don't use it very often. So I selected the best of the two for my mouse and ended up putting the keyboard back on a direct connection. It's been a couple of months and maybe the cord has warmed up or something. I still get a rare, second long stop in function, but the connect/disconnect problem hasn't happened in for a few weeks.
I wish that I had learned about the great prices on cables like this through Amazon long ago. I kick myself for wasting so much money in the past by going to the local B*** B** store. That big electronics chain charges over $20 for cables like this, compared to less than $3 here. The cables got to me two days after I ordered them. Kudos to Amazon and to their partner, YourCableStore.
I bought this because my 70$ logitech VX mouse, which I love, was super laggy (almost to the point of being garbage) if it was not right up close to the dongle. for 3$, I bought this cable, thinking I'ld try one last time to salvage such a nice mouse. plug-n-play on Windows 7 x64, now my dongle is up on my desk and my mouse works perfectly. would highly recommend something like this for someone frustrated with the crappy wireless connection of an otherwise superbly designed mouse.
I bought 2 cables to extend from my CPU to 2 flash drives. My flash drives work great when plugged directly into the CPU or when plugged into more expensive cables I already have, but don't work when using these cables. One cable worked for a day, then quit. The other cable didn't work at all. Cmple promptly sent a replacement. The replacement worked once, then stopped working. Then Cmple promptly sent me a complete refund. Cmple was excellent to deal with, but the product was worthless.
The nice thing about this product was it was cheap, and got to me fast the bad is it is a slow connection. I have been using it in combination with a high speed hub and the two together run in slow motion. At some points this equipment will recognize my external drives and usb devices and other times it wont.
Spite the constant problems I give this product a 3/5 cause its your typical Chinese crap you can get cheap on amazon. - Usb - Usb Cables - Usb Cable Extension - Usb Cable'
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Bookshelf Speakers - bf-24, home theater
The stands are pretty nice given its price. Although it's not made from solid wood, the stands are very sturdy and can hold surround speakers that are quite large. I'm using them to hold up Klipsch RS-7 speakers, which are 22" wide, and the stands do not wobble or tilt. I only dislike the design of the gap between the two vertical panels which does not adequately hide speaker wire very well. Thicker speaker wire likes to push against the front of the unit where the gap is. I ended up taping the wire to the back panel. For those that are interested, each box contains TWO stands (one pair). I made the mistake of buying two boxes since I couldn't find any information on how many each box contained. SANUS SYSTEMS BF-24B Wood Speaker Stands
Briefly:
--------
I ordered these stands to hold a pair of satellite speakers on a 7.1 setup and I am currently using them but the few design flaws have created major problems and, while I am using them now, I would not order them today, knowing what I know now.
But, here it is, what I hope is an objective review.
Packaging:
----------
They were delivered in a nice box. All parts were packed tight and secure with all wooden panels well protected against scratches.
Assembly:
---------
It shouldn't take longer than 30 minutes. It basically consists on attaching the 2 pillars to the base and then adding the top to the assembly. It's 8 screws per stand. A Phillips screwdriver is needed.
I was impressed how everything fit perfectly. There were no chips, cracks or scratches.
Looks:
------
These are surprisingly good-looking if black finish is what you need. To the extent that you can avoid chipping on scratching them, they don't look 'cheap' at all.
The bottom place allows for the speaker wire to come from underneath but there's no groove so, if you are placing the stand on a hard floor, it would destabilize it but carpets should be okay. Plastic wire covers will hide the wires if anyone would ever look 'behind' the speaker.
Design Flaws:
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* BASE*
There is no way you can hide the wire by running it under the base because there is no groove carved in the base for that purpose. If the stand sits on a flat, hard surface such as a wood floor running a wire underneath would destabilize the stand. If the stand sits on a carpet you MIGHT be able to squeeze a thin wire under, if you are using the provided spikes.
* WIRE PATH *
Assuming that you found a way to run the wire under the base, you will find that it's impossible to pass it through the speaker platform hole, unless it's a very thin wire. It was impossible to run a 16 gauge speaker wire through that hole.
* SPEAKER PLATFORM *
If you wire was thin enough to pass through the wall, you will have to deal with the hole being in the center of the platform. The only way you can have the wire going through that hole without destabilizing the speaker is by placing the speaker on its back, facing the ceiling or, if the speakers are small enough, place them on the front half of the platform, possibly destabilizing the stand.
I am currently using these stands in the same way I'd be using a stool to hold the speakers. The wire does not go underneath the base and it does not pass through the holes in the base or the speaker platform. There are no mounting options but I manage to keep the speaker in place with a little Velcro - it works.
Overall:
--------
Even though the packaging is tight, the assembly is easy and the materials appear to be of good quality I would not order stands of this design again for the reasons I stated above. Therefore, a 2-star rating is warranted because in Amazon's rating system 3 stars mean 'I like it' and I don't.
These are real good value stands. I have slightly heavier than recommended speakers on them and they are solid enough for me. Cable holes dont really allow for larger base speakers as the speaker covers the hole. Assembles easily. Spikes are plastic and not particularly strong but fair for this level of product. Makes a real improvement to sound quality and limits bass transfer through the floor so I'm happy with these.
I read most of the reviews on this set of speaker stands and I almost didn't buy them because of the cracking problem that so many reviewers had when they assembled the stands. I did an exhaustive search for other speaker stands, but I couldn't find anything comparable for anywhere close to the price for the Sanus stands. So I decided to take a chance and buy these.
I'm so glad I did. They work great. They even look decent.
As other reviewers said, the holes in the top plate and the base for the speaker wire are a joke, but I didn't need to use them. It looks just fine anyway.
In order to avoid the cracking problem, I decided to modify the assembly by using a different set of screws. From all the reviews that complained about cracking, it sounded to me like the supplied screws are just too big. So, I just used shorter and thinner screws (just by a little bit). I had no problems whatsoever with the assembly using the smaller screws. Even with the smaller screws, the stand is sturdy and solid. No issues.
Here's the specs on the screws that I used: Textron Drywall Screws, Steel Black Phosphorous, Phillips Bugle Head, Coarse. No. 6 X 1-1/4". Textron #30554.
These screws look just like the screws supplied by Sanus, but as I said, they're just a tad shorter and thinner.
Give it a try!
Update - 12/30/2010
The first pair of stands worked out so well that I bought another pair. I used the smaller screws on these too, and they worked great again. I'm very pleased with these stands. - Speaker Stand - Sanus - Bf-24 - Home Theater'
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