Guy Low Price Electronic: 15 Feb 2009

Sunday 15 February 2009

Waterproof Earphones - waterproof earphones, waterproof

I have never reviewed a product before. However, I'm very happy with this waterproof iPod. I really wanted to add swimming to my workout but it is always boring without music. When I saw there was a waterproof iPod, I decided to risk it and try it. I've used it now about 6 times and it works really well. The iPod works like any other iPod, so downloading and managing the music is really easy. The sound is good. The only thing I've noticed is the headphones sometimes fall out of your ears when you are swimming. Once I pulled my swim cap over my ears, it was a lot better. They are not equivalent to listening on a stationary bike, but work quite well and I find myself doing more and more laps when a good song comes on. Waterfi 100% Waterproof MP3 Player Swim System - iPod Shuffle 4th Generation 2GB for Underwater Swimming & Water Sports + Waterproof Headphones and Mounting Straps Included - No Case Needed -

I wanted to wait for at least a couple of months to write this review to give the product time to "break" but I'm so pleased with it that I had to write sooner. For Christmas, my husband bought me a NU Dolphin MP3 player. It broke after 5 months and was very difficult to use. I bought this one about 3 weeks ago to replace the Dolphin as swimming many laps can be, well.....boring. The H2OFriendly IPOD Shuffle is very easy to use. Power it on and it plays. Power it off and it turns off (ok, you're thinking that's nothing to review about, but the NU took quite a few seconds to power down and you had to have the right sequence to get it to turn off). The plus sign turns the volume up and the minus sign turns it down (again, with the NU I had to have the right sequence of buttons to get the volume level I wanted). If there any cons, it would be that you have to use the Apple ITunes/IPOD software to get your music into it. However, this is also a plus as your product is registered with Apple and, if stolen, can be tracked down as you need this software to put music on it. As far as music, you can put any music you own on it, or buy ITunes, whatever works for you. It will play video books, etc. Also, the battery will need to be charged while your PC is powered on and running. This isn't a problem because the product will hold a charge for a very long time. So far, on one charge, I used it to swim for about 6 forty-five minute sessions and about 4 hours of running. I'm charging it now but the unit, which talks, did not tell me it had a "low battery".

I bought the entire Waterproof MP3 Player Swim System which comes with the waterproof earbud set. I actually bought another waterproof headset when I placed the order. I leave the other headset connected to my goggles then detach the unit only and connect to my armband and this waterproof earbud set when I run (never know when I'll be caught in the rain). The Swim System has a couple of pieces of velcro and a nice waterproof earbud set which you will need to use the unit in the water. The unit is very light so you won't even know it's there while swimming or running--other than your great tunes coming from it.

So to sum it up, if you are a person out there looking at reviews like I was a few weeks ago, I have to say this is the product that I would recommend and I would buy again. It works exceptionally well and it is very easy to use. It makes swimming, and running, and any other watersports out there, so much more enjoyable. I don't have to spend any time fiddling with it to get it to play, like I did with my previous waterproof MP3 player. It sounds awesome, even underwater!

The kit with waterproof headphones that comes from H2OFriendly broke in my first use. The sound of one side just disappear. I bought a pyle's that is much better than those.

I also had problems with delivery from H2OFriendly. The iPod didn't arrive and they sad that the post office lost my package.

Amazon offered me a reimbursement after the second delivery failed, but I refused because I really wanted the product.

I just got finish using the product for the first time.

Overall product review:

Generally a good product. I wished I had noticed in the description that you can contact them after ordering to get a different color, but that was my fault for missing.

In the product description it mentions the shuffle is waterproof to 10'. It doesn't mention the headphones are only waterproof to 3 feet.

iPod review:

Pro:

The iPod works great. Was able to adjust volume, and skip songs while swimming. Was easy to upload my music (already had an iPhone, so setting this up took no time)

Con:

The clip is sideways, so when you clip it to your waste band (or goggles) up/down is previous next track, while left/right is volume control. It is something I can get use to. It is just a little weird.

Headphone review:

Pro:

It still works while wet.

Con:

The sound was a little tinny.

On land once I changed the ear bud they fit snugly. In water if I swam with any speed they would fall out (water has a lot more drag than air). I found wrapping the cable around my ear, and then running it through the goggles helped.

A little water between your ear and the headphone muffles the sound a lot. During most of my swim, I could only hear the lyrics through one headphone at a time.

At about 2 1/2 feet down almost all sound is lost.

The few times it wasn't falling out, or leaking water in to my ears, made my ears feel like they needed to pop.

(Voir plus bas pour la version française du commentaire.)

--ENGLISH COMMENT--

This little amazing piece of technology work exactly as advertised : you turn it on, put your headphones in your ears... and you forget it! I swim three times a week and it's SO great to enjoy some music while I swim... Since it's a brand new Apple genuine iPod Shuffle, this iPod is literally a waterproofed version of a great Apple product.

Headphones are a bit tricky (it took a few laps for me to figure out which combination and listening angle works best), but since I found it... it has been great! Sound is very clear and everything works great!

--COMMENTAIRE EN FRANÇAIS--

Ce petit bijou technologique fonctionne exactement comme le dit la compagnie : on branche les écouteurs, on l'allume... et on l'oublie! Je nage trois fois par semaine et je dois dire que c'est vraiment génial d'écouter de la musique en nageant. De plus, comme c'est un vrai iPod Shuffle fait par Apple, c'est carrément la version hydrofuge et imperméable d'un très bon produit Apple.

Au début, c'est un peu compliqué de trouver les bons réglages des écouteurs (angle dans l'oreille et taille des embouts, entre autres), mais une fois que c'est fait, c'est merveilleux. Le son est clair et tout fonctionne très bien! - Aquatic Mp3 Player - Swimming - Waterproof Earphones - Waterproof'

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Durable

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We had two of these boats that lasted several summers but this one sprung a leak the first time we used it. We cannot find the leak so it became trash. The postage to return it is more than it is worth, I am ordering another one and hopefully it will last the rest of this summer. Thank goodness it is not expensive. Intex Explorer 100 Boat'

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Green Smoothies

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I have an on-going love affair with my Vitamix (for most of these recipes you'll have a lot more success if you have a high-powered blender to really liquify everything) and with the benefits of green smoothies, as was looking for more versions of them. Which, I guess, this book offers. But it's probably a better book for complete beginners. Though there are hundreds of recipes, they have a certain sameness. Basically, mix a cup of greens with a banana and some other fruit. Anyone who's mixed up a few green smoothies already could tell you that. Also, and this is a matter of personal taste, a number of them use almond, rice, or soy milk as the liquid, and I find that kind of icky with vegetable smoothies.

While there's nutritional infomation included (the basics--calories, fat, fiber, sodium, etc), some of it strikes me as a little off as well. There are some recipes that produce very, very low calorie smoothies. We all know that of course fruits and vegetables are lower in calories, but still--if you multiply the stated number of calories per serving by the number of servings, some of the recipes still appear to contain way fewer calories than are in the ingredients. Additionally, there are a couple of recipes where the calorie count per 1 cup serving is over 1,000 (obviously, this can happen based on ingredients, but still--be careful if you're watching calories or, in some cases, fat).

I would suggest instead looking at The Truth About Beauty: Transform Your Looks And Your Life From The Inside Out by Kat James, as she gives a good basic recipe and then a smoothie template of sorts (in addition to a lot of great info), Kimberly Snyder's The Beauty Detox Solution: Eat Your Way to Radiant Skin, Renewed Energy and the Body You've Always Wanted--although it isn't strictly a "green smoothie recipe book", and any of Victoria Boutenko's books, especially "The Green Smoothie Revolution" and "Green for Life". These last two books focus exclusively on green smoothies, with many recipes and fantastic info. The Everything Green Smoothies Book: Includes The Green Go-Getter, Cleansing Cranberry, Pomegranate Preventer, Green Tea Metabolism booster, Cantaloupe Quencherand hundreds more! (Everything Series)

Very helpful with a wide variety of green smoothies that will work for children on up to hard core greens enthusiasts. I have made several recipes from this book and like the ability to look in the index in the back to find a smoothie that works for the ingredients I have.

I'm a huge green smoothie fan since 2006 and I've been ordering green smoothie resources for preparation for green smoothie workshops I'm planning. The general greens and green smoothie info in this book was great and all the side bar info was useful. Loved the design of the book, large format and layout and great idea having separate sections for athletes etc but a Vegan section? Since when were green smoothies not plant based? I was really surprised to see dairy and other milks being used in some of the recipes. This goes completely against the simplicity of green smoothies-water/greens/fruit using easily obtainable ingredients.

One other thing was the overuse of iceberg lettuce, romaine and watercress in the recipes. Iceberg is probably the worse green ever (if there is such a concept!) because it's the one insipid lettuce you'll find in every supermarket, salad bar, takeaway sandwich etc because it's basically tasteless and mostly water... and not very green!

Iceberg is good for crisp and crunch in a wrap but the whole idea of green smoothies is to be able to consume large amounts of dark leafy greens for maximum benefits- in an easy fast tasty simple way with a minimum of ingredients that are easily accessible.

Do not want to be critical but I see this book as appealing to the mainstream and therefore may be a bit misleading eg with the choice of ingredients. But on the upside the more people who blend and mend it the better!

I'm starting to get into the juicing and blending scene, and I thought I should get a book with some green recipes for my blender. It seems there are two types of smoothies no matter the section - ones that have 1-2 servings of veggies (usually 1 cup of a leafy green like romaine, watercress, spinach, etc.) with the rest of many fruits, or ones that are completely vegetables. The first type I guess is the way to disguise those greens in something sweet, which is good for those just starting out or want something healthy with a little veggie too. The other type with all veggies seems to be for those hardcore veggie smoothie eaters or if you like V8. Those ones are a bit too much for me, so it's like the smoothies are mostly on either end of the spectrum with a some in between. There are many recipes. You can mix and match. They even have ingredients like kefir, greek yogurt, almond milk, soy milk, etc. and there are smoothies for pregnant people, athletes, breakfast, dessert, different ailments, and pets (I don't think I'll be putting raw chicken into my blender for my cat!).

So to me, this is a good book to start out with or reference to to see what good combinations there are with what produce you have. However, it surprised me they had harder veggies like cucumber or carrots in some recipes. They ask that you peel them, and so I tried this. You can blend these veggies that way, but there's a ton of fiber that makes it more like a thick grainy soup. It also takes quite a while to peel your veggies, so the quickness of a smoothie turns into making a big meal. So I'd stick with a juicer for those harder foods, mostly veggies, and use a blender for leafy veggies and soft foods. I think the 'everything' series tried to make everything possible with smoothies, but sometimes a juicer is better-suited.'

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Battery Packs - 18v, chargers

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I had seen other reviews of this charger that said it could revive old Ryobi 18V NiCds. I have two NiCds that have worked great for several years, but are approaching the end of their lives. One of them, in fact, would no longer take a charge at all from the old NiCd charger. When I put my old batteries on this new charger they both charged well and are very usable again. The only caveat is that the batteries will still lose their charge within about 24 hrs (did I mention they're old :-), but if I know a little in advance when I'm going to need them I can just put one of them on the charger an hour before and I'm set to go for that job. Eventually I am going to get some new batteries (not sure yet if they will be NiCd or Li-ion), but this charger has extended the life of my old batteries at a time when I need to stretch my dollars as much as possible.

There are two lights on the charger that tell you what the charger is doing and what state your battery is in. If you can't remember what this light flashing, or that light on steady means, there is a handy, large reference panel right below the lights so it takes about 1 second to glance down to see what the lights are telling you.

One more thing I like about this charger that the old one didn't have: This one has holes on the back to allow it to be mounted on a wall. One less thing to take up space on the workbench! Also, with it mounted on the wall it only takes one hand to pull the batteries out of the charger. Brilliant! Ryobi 140501001 18V Lithium-ion 1-Hour Battery Charger

I have had this for a little over a year and it worked great with light use. This morning I went over to plug in a battery and noticed the unit seemed completely dead. Tried a different battery and outlet, nothing.

I opened the unit up to see if the fuse had blown and found a small plastic piece rattling around. The piece turned out to be an electrical voltage regulator component that had completely failed, cracking itself in half. Thankfully this failure didn't cause a fire or any additional damage. The fuse remained intact.

This makes me concerned that the design is either flawed or that the components used are of poor quality.

I have both Lithium Ion and NiCad batteries and this charger works well with both. I have a Ryobi drill and electric blower and I use both types of batteries with the charger and the tools. The charger is fast and easy to use. I like the status led indicators on the unit, as well. I am glad I purchased this unit, which was reconditioned.

Thought that all of a sudden all of my ni-cads were toast. No real upgrade option since

Ryobi doesn't offer a battery/charger upgrade for li-ions. Figured it was strange that all my batteries died at once so I popped for this charger. Worst case would have been that my nicads were still toast but it will allow me to upgrade to the better batteries later. Popped each into the new charger. Within a few minutes they were done. I think they held a charge, just needed to be reset or something. They're all working great. Probably will upgrade the batteries this year. But I'll be able to wait until there is a sale on the 2 pks.

I've got a "Chicken and the Egg" scenario with this charger...two brand new Ryobi batteries (NOT lithium...my mistake) seem to hold less-and-less of a charge each time I recharge them. I don't know if it's the charger or the battery. That aside...

...The lights on the left side are too confusing. There's a red and green light, and there are instructions on what each of five scenarios mean...problem is that the red light is either lit, blinking, or off...same thing with the green light. The combination is supposed to mean something, but it's very hard to determine.

Whatever happened to "Red light when charging, green light when done"?

That aside, it feels lightweight (cheap), and you can't pull the battery out with one hand. I have to use my foot and hand if I'm holding my Ryobi tools.

So, just 3 stars. It's "Just OK". - Chargers - Lithium-ion - Ryobi - 18v'

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Interval - interval training, interval timer

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Do what it suppose to do. Cool bell-sound at the end of the round. The only flaw: it keeps the time for maximum 12 rounds (but you can work it out, because after the twelfth round there is a round brake, so after the end of the round break, just press the start button and start over, keeping time for another 12 rounds). Everlast Boxing Interval Training Round Timer (Gold) - Timer - Interval Training - Fitness - Interval Timer'

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Safety Glasses - eye protection, cheap gifts

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Great glasses. Fits the kids well, and if you're rough on them and they get too scratched, just toss 'em and get a new pair. These are by far the most inexpensive glasses we've found with a Z87+ impact rating, and we buy them by the box full for our engineering camps. Try the adult size too with the black tips on the earpieces- they don't irritate the sides of your head! Love this brand. Radians Mirage Small Frame Clear Lens Safety Glasses

These are perfect for narrower faces. I use them in my elementary classroom, and they fit most of the students, but not all of them. Luckily, I also have a slightly larger size. A few of the kids complained that it distorted their vision or gave them headaches, so I gave them the larger size and they most of them were fine. Safety glasses are just difficult for some to get used to in general. I wear these myself, since I have a narrow face, and I like them a lot. They don't distort my vision anymore than other glasses, and they don't fall off my face, which is an issue I have with most adult-sized safety glasses.

I buy these for my boys for walking bike riding running playing around in the forest to protect their eyes. They are strong optically very good for ball catching, axe swinging etc. and easy to wear. They are highly scratch resistant-- why don't they make these for knees, elbows and knuckles? I'm right now buying more. The size fits a small head but also stretches to my head and I've worn the sunglass version for 8 staight hours driving and forgot I was wearing them. Great buy. - Eye Protection - Safety Goggles - Goggles - Cheap Gifts'

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