Thursday, 10 February 2011

Financial - secure, android


This app gets the job done. I like the variety of report options (total spent vs planned as bar graph, spent by category as pie graph, and list of all expenses input). I like that there is an option to export to excel, though Ive not tried it yet. The only feature that might be nice is an option to set goals for each category. Overall this app is easy to use, gives nice visuals of spending, anddoes what I need it to. Astral Budget - Financial - Free - Secure - Android'


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Wenger Swiss Military


I can definately notice a difference in the quality of the product, as apposed to other cheaper watches. The watch keeps excellent time, and looks very nice. I use it mostly for work, and need it for tactical reasons. The only complaint is the knob that sets the watch is rather large and it dug into my wrist. Now that my skin callaused I don't even notice it anymore. Wenger Swiss Military Men's 72925 Classic Field Black Dial Black Leather Military Watch'


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Decaffeinated - tea, herbal teas


During the summer months, I enjoy iced tea and prefer to make sun tea because it's so darn simple & energy-efficient. But finding tea that does well in the sun is difficult. The regular teas (black, green, white) become bitter when left standing too long, not surprisingly a requirement for sun tea. The herbals (fruits, chamomiles, mints) never seem to steep well in the sun and are generally bland & lack-luster. But this tea ... ah, heaven. Deep, robust, sweet, well-rounded. Personally, I think it is better as a sun tea than steeped the traditional way with hot water.



This tea steeps well in morning or afternoon sun. I always use glass (never plastic) and 6 bags for about 1.5 quarts. Makes a fantastic tea in 3-4 hours, and letting it sit for a couple more hours produces a tea that definitely needs to be watered down. Needs no sugar, no lemon. Perfect as is. Awesome, just awesome. I wouldn't go a summer without it.



I pick it up at Trader Joe's, and occassionally I find it at Target and Wal-mart. Nevertheless, considering that shipping is included in a subscription, Amazon's S&S price is fair and on-par with B&M retail outlets. Good Earth Original Caffeine Free Tea Bags, 18-Count, Boxes (Pack of 6)

I just received a shipment of this tea (6/24/10) and notice that on the Amazon info lists the third ingredient as "Artificial flavor", but the listing on the box says "Natural flavor" and specifically states there is no artificial flavor in it. So, don't be put off by the Amazon listing or reviews that used that as a source for their review.

I used to get this tea when at a Good Earth restaurant in California; sadly, they are no more. I was very happy to find it at Amazon. I make iced tea mostly. Very refreshing and I can drink it in the evening as it's decaf.

First, to the Natural/Artificial concerns - it really does say Natural Flavors in the ingredient list, NOT artificial as some of the reviews state. Box also states "No sugar, caffeine, artificial flavors, colors or preservatives". I've submitted a picture of the ingredients list to Amazon, which you can view at the top of this item page.



Ingredients list:

Red Rooibos, Chicory Root, Natural Flavor, Rosehips, Cinnamon, Lemongrass, Peppermint, Papaya, Chamomile, Panax Ginseng Leaves, Anise Seed, Dandelion Root, Ginger Root, Orange Oil, Orange Peel.



I was given my first box of this tea by a friend who knew I liked cinnamon tea. Up to that point, my favorite tea was Celestial Seasonings' Bengal Spice. But when I tried Good Earth, I fell in love! Now I cannot find it anymore in any of the local stores that carried it, so I signed up for the regular shipments from Amazon.



Everyone I have shared this tea with tell me how much they enjoy it, that it hardly seems possible for tea to have such intense flavor and not need sweetening. I have to be sure to get some before my husband & kids finish the box without my getting a chance to have a few myself! Seems like every time I visit my mom now, she makes up some of this for us to share as some iced tea.



I do not use any sweetener, which says a lot because I use sweetener with pretty much every other kind of herbal tea I drink. Good Earth is great hot or cold, and it sure does give my tastebuds a gingerbread-like warmth on a fall or winter morning. There is no tea-ish, bitter taste or aftertaste.



If you love cinnamon, gingerbread, or a really good caffeine-free tea that doesn't need sweetening, give this one a try!

I found this tea originally at Trader Joe's before my local store stopped selling it. I was relieved to find it on Amazon! This is one of my favorite teas that I can drink every day. It is a sweeter tea that has a nice zip to it, but I don't find it too sweet. One thing I particularly love about this tea is that it continues to taste great no matter how long I leave the bag in. When I am working at home, I often make a large mug with one bag and then keep reheating and refilling throughout the day as needed. This makes it not only a nice addition to my day but very economical:) The fact that it's a bit sweet helps keep down any post-meal "dessert" cravings.

I LOVE this tea and am so glad Amazon carries it as it is hard to find in the stores. The one place I know that carries it is way more expensive than buying it online.

Great herbal tea that is strongly cinnamon and naturally sweet. I don't need to add any sweetner to this. I also find the tea bags go a long way. I only use 2 for a large saucepan full of water. I find the taste is somewhat addicting and I find regular tea boring after drinking this.

This is truly a great tea! It's caffine free. You don't have to add anything to make it better, and it's incredibly soothing! Stock up! I usually would get this at the grocery store, but they were having a hard time keeping it stock. A couple days was one thing, but when it went on to a couple of weeks I had to do something! So I ordered online. Now I have a back up reserve - it's that good!!



I take the individually wrapped tea bags with me wherever I go - friends, meetings, even restaurants. Quite often the aroma wafting outwards will prompt someone to ask me about it. I love that - I'll tell them about it and then I always try to have an extra or two to give out. Waitresses are always asking me about it, and I always offer one to them.



If you enjoy cinnamon and warm spices like that, you'll definitey enjoy this tea! And with no caffine you can even enjoy it late at night too!

Has anyone else noticed that the flavor seems to have changed in recent batches of Good Earth Original? I find it much "twiggier" for lack of a better descriptor, and not NEARLY as sweet and good as it was before. I'm going to buy another box to make sure that this isn't totally random, but this was the case with two boxes I bought, one of Original and one of Original Decaf. Other friends of mine have noticed this as well; I really hope they didn't change the formula because it is/was my favorite tea and I don't like what I'm tasting now! - Cinnamon Tea - Herbal Teas - Tea - Decaf Tea'


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Articulating Wall Mount - cheetah, tv mount


The mount arrived on time.

I bought this to hang my Toshiba 52" above the fire place.

The instructions are easy to follow and any and all hardware come with the mount.

My only complaint is the mounting bracket, It could be wider.

The stud's in the wall are wider than 18" (non load bearing wall)

If it came with some sort of "extender" bracket then this unit would be absolutly PERFECT!.



I ended up cutting the sheetrock and added more 2x4 in the wall and put the sheet rock back.(wasn't too bad)

Once it was mounted, I extended the arm and put my weight on it (210lbs) this thing did not budge!

Very sturdy unit, it suprised the heck out of me.

I will buy another one without hesitation as soon as I get another flat TV for my bedroom.



Hope this help's!!!!



Max Cheetah Mounts 32"-55" Articulating LCD TV Wall Mount Bracket with Full Motion Swing Out Tilt & Swivel Dual Arms for Flat Screen Flat Panel LED Plasma Displays

I recently bought this Tv wallmount to hang my new 42" Toshiba clearscan 240 LCD. I was admittedly apprehensive about hanging my tv up on the wall, but after reading the reviews on the previous model by Cheetah and hearing the lone review on the newer model of wall mount, I decided to go for the upgraded model.

I am certainly glad that I did! The build quality of this beast of a mount is high, though just like the original mount it's fasteners are somewhat suspect, so I did what other recommended and went out and bought new bolts and jam nuts. (A tiny cost of 45cents for a few heavy duty nuts and bolts)



The assembly was straight forward, instructions easy to follow and it certainly holds up well under even my bodyweight when I tested the strength of it on the wall (didn't budge an inch). The fact that it's rated to hold far more then my tv's 59pounds was certainly a major plus in my mind.



The mounts movements are fluid, easily adjusted and seady when your done positioning it. I've got it hung so that it's positioned in a corner of the room, so as I move around to different area's of the room, such as my gaming desk I just turn it easily to face the desk, or the couch for movies/tv watching.

Don't buy one of these from Best Buy for $300.



Don't pay for someone to install one of these unless you can't operate a drill.



These Cheetah mounts are great. I have one APDAM3B (newer model) & one APDAM2B. They take no more than an hour to install - and that's with finding the studs (I would not mount one of this without standard 16" studs), making sure everything is level, double checking your measurements, etc.



They are extremely versatile (should fit most TV's and most homes) and very sturdy.



My LCD TV's are 40-50 lbs, but I would have no qualms about installing a big 100 lb Plasma.



The instructions are decent, but remember they can't account for every house and every TV.

I have a 46 inch Sanyo LCD TV that weighs a little under 60 pounds that I bought about 2 years or so ago. So it is well within the limits stated by the manufacturer.



That being said - this is overall a very solid TV mount/bracket. I will try to post pictures later, but I am hoping my solutions to some of the problems will help others.



First, I am in a newer house. So the studs are the normal 16 inches apart. My problem is I wanted to mount it on a wall that is between two closet doors. And once I started looking for the studs, it just so happens that there is a stub smack in the middle of that space. The space was about 30.5 inches wide of wall. So the next studs over were where the actual door frame was for each closet. I searched around the internet and found others that a similar problem. So what I did was (my friend's husband came up with this) I cut a piece of 3/4 inch plywood to the size of the bracket part that was supposed to mount to the 2 studs. I spray painted it to match the black bracket. Then we screwed the bracket to the plywood in about 6 different places and then took three extra long bolts (may 2.5 or 3 inches?) and bolted the plywood to the stud. That thing is not going anywhere unless the entire stud comes down. It is VERY solidly attached to the wall. So that is how I solved the "one stud" problem.



The next issues I came across was that one arm on the mount moved fairly easily. It took some force, but I was glad it wasn't too loose or that may be a problem. However, the other arm was so tight that I stood on one side and tried to pull it out with both hands. It would not mave. My friend had to try 2 or 3 times with all of his strength to loosen the bolt. Once he finally managed to do that, it was fine. But good grief. It felt like someone had used some kind of pneumatic wrench to tighten that thing!



The last issue I had/have is that once we got everything on the wall and connected, etc., I looked behind the TV at the bracket. Before we mounted it, the entire bracket (the arms) could be pushed all the way back and the bracket would lay pretty flat. Once the TV was on it, you could see the arms leaning a bit at the top. It isn't noticeable when you watch the TV. And if it was, you could compensate by adjusting the tilt of the TV. But I would think that since my TV is less than 60 pounds and this bracket/mount is solid and weighs about 30 pounds itself, it shouldn't show any "sag" (for lack of a better word). So that is concerning because I wonder if it will sag more over time and with use?



And what others say about the built in bubble level... VERY true. It is way off. Do not trust it for sure. I had two levels of my own and the built in level. My two levels were dead on - both showed really close to perfectly level, where-as the bubble in the built in level was way over to one side.



Otherwise, this is a superb mount! I will try to take pictures soon and post. It works perfectly for what I needed and for the space I had to work with.



And those of you who are thinking "how did she put a 46 inch TV between two doors that are only 30.5 inches apart?" One of the closets is the hot water heater. So that really never gets opened. The other is a game closet. I do open that one often. But because this bracket has the articulating arms and you can swivel it, there is PLENTY of room to just pull the TV out a bit and open the door. It is perfect for me!



If you want to ask questions, please do. And I will try to help or explain what I can. I also put a wall shelf unit for the other TV apparatus like the DVD player, cable box, Nintendo, etc. When I get the chance I will review that unit (because I also bought it off of Amazon) and then post the link in case anyone is interested.



I subtracted a star because of the arm that was almost impossible to loosen and because there is a bit of sag in the bracket now that it is on the wall with the TV on it. I would have given 4.5 stars if that were possible. - Tv Mount - Cheetah - Tv Mounts - Articulating Wall Mount'


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Screwdriver - screwdrivers, screwdriver


I purchased my original set of these about ten years ago at brick and mortar store. They went in my kitchen drawer for small repairs and they quickly became the most used tools in the house. There are three slotted, three phillips and two torx head screwdrivers in the plastic case. The smallest (1.5 mm) slotted/flat blade screwdriver is the perfect size for tightening the screws in my eyeglass frames. The other screwdrivers are great for a variety of tasks from tightening outlet covers to opening electronics. They seem to be built to last and I use them at least twice a week for something. Even the plastic case on my set has worn extremely well.



I was so impressed with the KR 12709 I searched them out (and found them here on Amazon)when I needed an inexpensive gift. KR Tools 12709 Pro Series 8-Piece Precision Screwdriver Set - Repair - Electronics - Screwdrivers - Screwdriver'


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Isymphony - 720p, hdtv


The price seemed too good to be true when I ordered it, and in fact it was. The screw holes to attach the TV stand were drilled into the back, but the female machined metal parts were not installed, so the stand could not be attached. I tried to contact customer support and they had no idea what they were talking about. It's a company they hire out- not iSymphony. Any way, they had me go to an auto parts store to try to buy new screws, because they said I needed bigger ones and weren't authorized to send them to me. The new screws were about 4 times too wide, and no way that was going to work.



I hooked it up without the stand anyway to see if I'd opt for a replacement vs return. For the price, the picture looks pretty awesome, however this TV has one green dot/ dead pixel on the left side. Hopefully this TV is just uniquely bad. Since the picture is so nice, I decided to try to replace it.



Oh one other thing I'm noticing. No audio output- so external speakers might be difficult without splitting wires or being creative some other way.



Will update this review when I see how the replacement experience goes.



UPDATE: Amazon is telling me I might not be able to get a free replacement, but they don't know why. The customer service rep was extremely helpful, but he couldn't figure out why he couldn't get it to process. He said he's got three people working on it. :)



I over-nighted the original TV, but now who knows if or when I can get another one.



Alright Amazon customer service is awesome!!! Amazon definitely gets 5 stars from me! The guy finally figured it out and sent me out another TV next day!!! But... of course the stand doesn't connect again. No green dot this time, so it's time to find some screws that will hold the stand. iSymphony LC32iH56 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV, Black

I got in on the lighting deal on this... Had it next day shipped (I love Amazon Prime!) and set it up the day after I ordered it. Out of the box, based screwed on, and set up via HDMI in under 15 minutes. The biggest concern was the remote and the warranty. Keep reading to see how they weren't an issue!



There are 4 screws that hold the base down. This can also be attached to a standard VESA wall mount. There are plenty of inputs as pictured. The VGA is very nice if you wanted to hook a laptop up to this. The side RCA and side HDMI is a nice addition for a TV at this price point. The menu interface is well done and actually a lot better than I'd expect for something at this price. The picture is nice and for the price, really you can't go wrong!



The TV seemed well packed and protected. There was a nice thick plastic sheet taped to the front to protect the actual screen. Three language manuals and a quick start card for assembly are in the package. There were no dead pixels on my set and the picture is crisp and clear. Note: This TV is only 720p, it is NOT 1080p as mentioned in another review. Overall I'm VERY impressed with this TV for the price.



I was worried about the warranty, which according to the manual is 90 days parts and labor, 1 year parts. I opted for a SquareTrade warranty for 3 years. You can search the internet for coupons and get good discounts on them or make it easy and buy the SquareTrade warranty direct through Amazon. I got a 3 year warranty for about $20.



UPDATE: The code I used for my Comcast Remote (the Red OK button version) was: 10812 This is for an Akai TV Manufaturer. But it all works, On, Off, Volume, Input, Menu, etc. So even if you don't have Comcast, you can see if your remote has codes for Akai and try that out.



SECOND UPDATE: Another user confirmed that they were able to use their Time Warner universal remote by programming the remote to control an Akai TV. You might want to try this if you can't find a code.



If you need to program your remote, most likely your cable provider has the instructions online, so do a search.



At first I gave this 4 stars, but seeing how the remote and warranty issues are resolved, I'm upping to 5 stars for a simply excellent (paid $198) value!

Ok so I ordered this tv yesterday on a lightning deal and had never herd of this brand. I was very worried what It would be when I opened the box but Fedex delivered it 30 minutes ago (less then 24 hours from my placed order to delivery) and it was packaged well looks just like every other lcd and the remote worked great! I had it out of the box and hooked up in about 10 minutes that's including screwing in the base. There was no info on this tv when i ordered it so I hope this helps someone. It has plenty of connections including computer connections it has the standard wall mount holes, and from what i can tell in the first hour of owning it looks just as great and crisp as much more expensive flat screens. One thing I'm confused about is it says only 720p on Amazon but i have it hooked up with only component cables while waiting on my new cable box with hdmi hookups and the picture is already reading 1080i. so I'm thinking when the hdmi is hooked up it will be a full 1080p but do not hold me to that. So even though I still don't know the warranty or anything about this brand I am very happy with my $198.00 purchase and it looks great in my bedroom. Great buy so far! - Isymphony - Hdtv - 720p - Black'


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Performence Ballistic Alloy - pellets, performence ballistic alloy


All 4 types of ammo included in this package work great in my Beeman .177 air gun. And, you can't beat the price for 1000 pellets. I use them all for target shooting and not hunting. The match pellets have a flat nose and make huge holes that quickly tear up the paper targets that I use (I print the targets myself on 67 lb cover stock). The other three types of pellets seem much better for my targets since they have either pointed or rounded heads and make cleaner holes.



Overall, I like them and will definitely buy more of the same when my supply runs low. GAMO Assorted .177 Caliber Pellets (Combo Pack of 1000)

Each air rifle or air pistol fires different brands (and types of pellets within brands) differently, having specific pellets that it shoot most accurately. Gamo's assortment pack gives you the opportunity to try several types of Gamo pellets without a big investment in the "losing" pellets. In my Gamo CFX, the most accurate was the "Hunter" (NOT the Match pellet - surprisingly), but everyone needs to try their airgun with several types to see what works best for them.

These are great for both rifles and pistols. I have a P99 replica and one of the pellet types are not recommended for repeating rifles or pistols (magnum), but I will still try them regardless. So, I thought I would share that. Otherwise, a great buy. So far I see no imperfections in them, and they shoot well...as they should. If you use airguns often, this is an excellent buy for you, possibly the best for pellets on Amazon.com. So, buy this, maybe even two packs, and keep stocked.



Pellet Statistics:



Magnum: greater expansion. the pointed tip and double ring design increases the mushroom effect for best results on small game. Not recommended for use in repeating rifles and pistols.



Master Point: maximum penetration. the aerodynamic design concentrates mass to give longer distances, the pointed tip increases the penetration for best results on small game.



Hunter: Due to heavier weight and dome configuration, this pellet performs with terrific impact, even when long distance is required.



Match: Extreme Accuracy. relativily light weight and flat head cuts targets cleanly. good for scoring.

In order to shoot accurately with a pellet rifle, it's necessary to determine which pellet is best for your rifle. Every rifle is different. I don't know why, but they are. The gammo assotment package is the least expensive way to determine the best pellet. I recommend the package for anyone concerned about pinpoint accuracy with their pellet rifle.

Each one flew staight and true. It was a interesting to see the results from each type on a .5-inch thick board.



Personally I'm a plinker but if anyone has varmit problems, from the results I've seen, the hunting tips would be effective and humane.

This is a good assortment of pellets. I still do not have a favorite, but if you are new to pellet shooting and want to get a flavor for different types of pellets, this is probably a good bet for you. The price isn't bad either. - Performence Ballistic Alloy - Air Rifle - Pellets - 177'


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