List Price: $399.99
Sale Price: $211.15
Today's Bonus: 47% Off
For something this low priced I would always expect to upgrade the HDD right away. The unit is pretty easy to setup and get ddns to work for remote viewing through cell apps.
ZMODO 8 CH CCTV Security DVR With 4 Outdoor IR Camera System
List Price: $399.99
Sale Price: $211.15
Today's Bonus: 47% Off
For something this low priced I would always expect to upgrade the HDD right away. The unit is pretty easy to setup and get ddns to work for remote viewing through cell apps.
Sony Xperia Z1 C6903 (Honami) 16GB Purple (Factory Unlocked)
When I received the phone, I was very satisfied with the packaging. I it was well packaged and the box in excellent condition when opened. When I opened the box, I was pleasantly surprised. The contents consisted of, of course the phone, a pair of headphones, the charger with a U.S. adapter and charging cable, the manuals, and the phone charging dock, which was awesome because, that alone I've seen sold on Amazon for $35 or so.
But to the phone which is beautiful, by the way. Other than the fact that the phone is a finger print magnet, it definitely has a premium feel. I'm in love with the color and the look and feel of the phone. The sound quality is great. The speaker has a nice sound and the call quality has been great. I'm currently with T-mobile in the U.S. and the LTE works great here in San Diego. The performance has also not let me down. I've been using the phone for games and internet and music and I've had no issues with lagging and the battery life has been pretty good as well. I haven't managed to bring it below 30% yet with heavy use. Great phone.
But to the phone which is beautiful, by the way. Other than the fact that the phone is a finger print magnet, it definitely has a premium feel. I'm in love with the color and the look and feel of the phone. The sound quality is great. The speaker has a nice sound and the call quality has been great. I'm currently with T-mobile in the U.S. and the LTE works great here in San Diego. The performance has also not let me down. I've been using the phone for games and internet and music and I've had no issues with lagging and the battery life has been pretty good as well. I haven't managed to bring it below 30% yet with heavy use. Great phone.
0.42X FISHEYE LENS W/ MACRO FOR CANON EOS DIGITAL REBEL
I don't write reviews but I figured I would write on this because of the mixed reviews.
I have a Canon T2i (550D) and bought this lens adapter just for fun. The box contains one fisheye/wide lens with case and caps, 2 adapter rings, and instructions. This product is supposed to be screwed onto the front of your existing lens, not to replace it. I used the 58 mm adapter ring to fit the fisheye lens to the front of my 18-55 kit lens. yay have fun with fisheye/wide angle! awesome for video.
Here is where to find the macro lens. So the fisheye lens is attached to your lens but the fisheye lens itself unscrews into 2 parts. The main part of the fisheye lens actually unscrews from the ring that is screwed into the adapter ring. That is the Macro lens. use manual focus and get close.
The second adapter ring lets me put this fisheye lens on my 50mm 1.8 or any lens with the same diameter. It looked like crap to me so i keep it on my sigma 28-70 2.8 and make up for my 1.7 crop sensor.
To me this is TOTALLY worth it because i can be creative and have fun without having to buy an expensive lens. I hope this helps someone
I have a Canon T2i (550D) and bought this lens adapter just for fun. The box contains one fisheye/wide lens with case and caps, 2 adapter rings, and instructions. This product is supposed to be screwed onto the front of your existing lens, not to replace it. I used the 58 mm adapter ring to fit the fisheye lens to the front of my 18-55 kit lens. yay have fun with fisheye/wide angle! awesome for video.
Here is where to find the macro lens. So the fisheye lens is attached to your lens but the fisheye lens itself unscrews into 2 parts. The main part of the fisheye lens actually unscrews from the ring that is screwed into the adapter ring. That is the Macro lens. use manual focus and get close.
The second adapter ring lets me put this fisheye lens on my 50mm 1.8 or any lens with the same diameter. It looked like crap to me so i keep it on my sigma 28-70 2.8 and make up for my 1.7 crop sensor.
To me this is TOTALLY worth it because i can be creative and have fun without having to buy an expensive lens. I hope this helps someone
Nikon D3000 10.2 MP Digital SLR 6 Piece Bundle with 18-55mm
List Price: $799.95
Sale Price: $484.00
Today's Bonus: 39% Off
Looking over several cameras and choosing one for someone who has outgrown point and shoots, I came back to the Nikon D3000. By no means will this model blow away the seasoned photographer, however it does cover the basics and more. We picked it up and tried it out over the weekend.
First time DSLR users will enjoy the Guide Mode. It literally walked us through different shoot scenarios via the fixed 3" LCD screen. An excellent tool, its step by step instructions allowed my niece to move from the operating booklet in no time. After a few more runs, I am sure that she will feel quite comfortable shooting in the manual mode. The quick shutter release was a nice surprise.
Upon completing two days of shooting with the Nikon D3000, I walked away impressed. In manual mode, indoor shots were a balanced and perfect mix of shadow and color. As usual with shooting in low light, noise will make an appearance. However this system can be tweaked to deliver some outstanding indoor photographs. The bottom line is proper settings.
A basic fix is the VR (Vibration Reduction) feature located on the lens. This should be activated, especially indoors. A tripod will certainly help. In auto mode, just set the camera to night portrait and sit back and enjoy the rest of your flight.
Outdoor shots were vibrant, sharp and rich in color without editing. The onboard flash system was more than capable in meeting fill flash requirements. Without a doubt the overall performance of the camera, features and image quality is excellent.
With 10.2 megapixels to work with, I easily blew up a personal favorite my niece had taken to 16" x 20". Even though I don't see myself trading in my Nikon D300 for this model anytime soon, this camera is by far an upgrade over any of the souped up point and shoots out there.
Its easy to see that the real jewel in this model is the auto focus system. With six auto mode settings (Landscape, Sports, Child, Closeups, Portrait, and Night Portrait) each and every photograph can be a keeper. Onboard editing tweakers won't be disappointed with this model. It covers the basics. The D3000 operates with both SD & SDHC cards.
The Nikon D3000 is paired with a Nikkor 18-55mm AF-S DX lens. It will operate with any Nikkor DX and AF-S lens. Older Nikkor or similar AF lens is a no go when shooting in auto but will function in manual mode. Since this model is not fitted with the built in optical image stabilizer, I recommend switching on the Vibration Reduction (VR) feature located on the lens. Still the best anti vibration tool is a tripod.
Nikon makes it really simple with a thumb dial for tweaking aperture and shutter speed. Metering, focus modes, and exposure compensation are easily controlled via the menu. The D3000 does not shoot in video mode. This model easily shoots over three frames per second in continuous mode. The 3D tracking sensor operates quite well in low lighting.
The Nikon D3000 camera kit comes packaged with a EN/EL3e Li-ion battery, charger, USB cable, video cable. strap, eye cap, eye cup, software CD-ROM, 18-55mm Nikkor lens, lens cap, instruction booklet and a one year Nikon warranty.
Coming out of the gate, I still find this model a little pricey for a basic DSLR. I am sure heading into the fall and holidays buyers will begin to see a noticeable price drop. Even so, the D3000 is a fine tuned replacement for the immensely popular entry level Nikon D40. Newcomers to the DSLR community will certainly enjoy this outstanding alternative.
Panasonic TC-L50ET60 50-Inch 1080p 120Hz Smart 3D IPS LED HDTV
List Price: $1,399.99
Sale Price: $1,149.00
Today's Bonus: 18% Off
Just bought this new 2013 ET60 50 inch model from Amazon about one week ago. I previously owned a Panasonic 2012 ET5 model and a 2012 Samsung S6 6150 HDTV. I use the Digital Audio output to a Sony A/V receiver.
THE GOOD
The mechanical construction of the 2013 ET60 is very good. The bezel and stand are now a silver color which looks richer and matches my decor better (its very hard to find any Audio Video component that is not black which looks like office furniture!). The stand is very solid construction, but does not swivel. The cable connections are parallel to the back panel, which allows the panel to be pushed up closer to the wall when using the stand (my previous Samsung had cable connections perpendicular to the panel, so it needed to stay at least 6 inches away from the wall, and you could see the ugly back cables when you passed by it).
3D support its awesome. The picture quality seems to have improved from last year, especially the 2D to 3D conversion (you can watch regular TV channels and convert them to a simulated 3D). Since there is little 3D content available, and very expensive, I will likely use the 2D to 3D conversion feature mostly. The screen also contains IPS technology, providing a good wide viewing angle. I have a bright room, and the picture looks good with little glare and no adjustment out of the box.
The new Homescreen changes from last year's model improves the User interface greatly. You can customize the homescreen to add which Apps and browser shortcuts appear. The set will remember which homescreen you last used when it powers up again. You can turn this feature off if you wish, (as well as the annoying advertising banner).
Internet streaming to TV is good, no stutter at all. The previous 2012 Samsung model I owned would need to buffer You-tube videos every 20 seconds, making it impossible to watch. I have wired Ethernet to both old and new TV.
Swipe and Share feature. From my iPad, I can easily send stored pictures or video to the TV screen, with the Panasonic VieraRemote2 app. You need to use the browser function within the VieraRemote2 app which is limited to what the TV browser can support.
The Panny ET60 supports wired keyboard and mouse only (NOT Bluetooth as indicated in the Amazon product info). I was able to use a Logitech M505 wireless mouse (non-bluetooth) that comes with a small USB dongle, which I plugged into the TV backpanel it works great. The iPad Remote2 app contains a keyboard function, so I don't need any dedicated keyboard.
THE BAD
You want to watch foreign news or other non You-Tube video from the internet ? Many video streams still required Flash Player or Silver light both are NOT supported. It kinda renders the browser app useless for me, since for most general browsing, I will use my iPad. Most TVs don't support Flash Player.
The Amazon Instant Video App is over two years old, with no further updates available! No 5.1 sound, no Watchlist, awful old User Interface. I owned a 2012 Samsung TV and the same App was better, newer, had the watchlist etc. The new Panasonic remote now has a red Netflix button on it. We can only draw the conclusion that there is no further support for the Amazon Instant Video app on Panasonic TVs (since March 2011). This is looking like a possible deal breaker for me...
There is no way to turn off the internal TV speakers if you use the Digital Optical Output only (without Viera Link hdmi) to your A/V Receiver ! I verified this with Panasonic tech support. You need to turn your speaker volume to zero (the mute function shows an ugly icon).
The Media Player (files on USB stick) does not support 5.1 surround sound, only stereo (confirmed with Panasonic). The .avi type media files are not supported, only mp4 /mkv.
THE UGLY
You will likely be comparing this model with the Samsung UN50F6400 model, which has about the same price point at the time of this writing. The Samsung has the black color with spider leg base, and supports Bluetooth keyboard/mouse and dual core processor. The Samsung has Active 3D (battery powered glasses). The Samsung's Amazon Instant Video app is much better, and there are more apps available in general with Samsung (even if you only really use 4 or 5 of them in the end ;-). I disliked the Samsung 2012 Series 6 remote, as the buttons were too small and placed in an awkward position the Panasonic remote is better. Its a difficult choice in the end, it really depends on what features you use most, but so far I am happy with the Panasonic 2013 ET60 model for its mechanical and picture quality strengths less the dated Amazon Instant Video app and lack of 5.1 sound on Media files.
OMAX 40X-1600X Digital Lab Trinocular Biological Compound
I am very happy with the microscope but unimpressed with the camera.Images are very pixelated and of no real use.I would recomend buying with a better camera or just the microscope and saving for a better camera later.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (16GB, Deep Grey)
List Price: $499.99
Sale Price: $429.99
Today's Bonus: 14% Off
Review updated 2/5/2013. I ordered this tablet immediately when Amazon posted it with 1-day shipping and as of 7/20/2013 I haven't had any issues as a few users seem to have reported. Don't get discouraged if you get a lemon; just return it for another Amazon has free returns/replacements in such cases.
* Hand Written Notes
S Notes Exports to PDF and also JPG. It has templates for various types of productivity. My favorites are the ruled paper, the meeting template (date, time, attendees, meeting notes) and the recipe template (I can imagine this being very useful for the kitchen, propped up in a case).
Papyrus Beta This free application is very nice and similar to S Note but has normal paper templates such as College Ruled, Wide Ruled, Narrow Ruled, Blank and 4 different Graph Paper types.
ezPDF Costs $3 and is what you'll probably want to make annotations on lecture slides and whatnot.
MOST applications allow you to rest your palm on the tablet while writing, others are not as well written. This all depends on the author of a specific app.
SOME applications have nice erasers. Some times you can press the button on the S Pen to erase instead of write and some times you can just use your finger to erase while using the S Pen to write. This all depends on the author of a specific application.
* Hand Writing Instead of Typing The default keyboard has an option that lets you hand write in any input field instead of typing. Long-press the settings (gear) button on the keyboard to select the T button which enables hand writing. Please see the User Images of this product for a good example of this.
* Multitasking (updated 2/5/2013) Within the past week I've noticed a number of apps I use get multi-screen support so it's much less limited and a gimmick, now. I can easily be taking notes on one half of the screen while browsing or chatting or whatever on the other half. With more apps supporting the feature now it's a much larger factor in whether or not to buy.
* GPS Fast and accurate. I am currently on the first floor of a two-story apartment building about ten feet away from the outer wall (sliding glass door) and Google Maps had my position within 40 meters almost instantly after turning on the GPS receiver. Within 35ish seconds it had my position accurate to 10 meters.
* S Pen Comfortable to hold (I'm a 5'10" tall guy and have normal sized hands). There's an odd button on the side which adds extra functionality with certain gestures. I have no idea how it works because I'm pretty sure the S Pen isn't powered in any way, but it's more than just a stylus.
* Screen Very sensitive. I've been taking notes for half of my classes on my tablet and it works well. I usually have the brightness set to 10-15% or slightly less in classrooms or at home because that's all I really need but also to conserve battery life.
* Battery While leaving it on all the time, wifi off when not using it, I manage to only charge my Note 10.1 once a week. Standard usage includes notes during seven hours of lecture each week and using it periodically throughout the day or in the evening.
To really stretch your battery life you'll need to disable some apps. I disabled Google+ and some of the default/Samsung apps that come with the device in Settings->Application Manager. As of 2/5/2013 I'm still getting ~7 days out of one charge with moderate usage.
* Build Quality Standard Samsung quality. The case has a lot of plastic and the back gives a little if you push on it but it definitely feels solid. Now that it's in a case the build quality doesn't matter any more.
* Speed
Very smooth. I updated about 10 apps at the same time in the market, an operation which would nearly cripple my Galaxy S until it was done, and I couldn't tell any difference in the smoothness of the Note 10.1. While I was exploring I ended up having 15-20 applications open at the same time but again I couldn't tell any difference.
Coming from a Galaxy S phone and hardly ever using a tablet before, I'm amazed by how fast this thing boots/restarts.
* Wifi No complaints. It connects quickly and hasn't had any issues.
* Sound Good, loud and scared my cat when I started something on Google Play. She looked around like she does when our surround sound is on because she doesn't understand what was making such a noise. I can't tell any difference in quality between it and my laptop when watching the same video on both (the laptop was ~$1700 before a coupon).
* Rooting Friendly Check out the forum for this tablet on xda developers for info. This device already has developers that say they'll work on it and I'm sure more will sign up because the Note 10.1 stands out among the crowd.
* Universal Remote / IR Blaster
Works well enough. I'm going to sell my Logitech Harmony One universal remote because the Peel application works but could be nicer. With my Harmony One I could set up custom activities like Listen to Radio on my Onkyo receiver but the Peel application only has standard actions like Watch Bluray. I can still set it to play the radio but it's buried in the menus.
Great cable TV interface. We don't watch/have cable, but if you tell it what service you have it'll tell you what is currently playing, what will be playing and provides customized content based on the preferences you specify. It works with DVRs so I imagine you can manage all of that from the Peel application as well.
* Cameras Amazon removed the images I posted for some reason so just take my word that the cameras work well. Both the front 1.9MP camera and 5MP camera fully live up to their specs.
* The Wife Now that I've set it up the way I like it she won't put it down. You may not want your not-so-techie spouse to love it, but at least my wife won't be complaining that I spent $550 on it and then another nearly $100 on accessories =)
* SwitchMe App When set up properly, if your tablet is rooted, this free application will give your Android device multiple profiles. Normally an Android device can only have one primary Google account to use with Google specific applications and whatnot, but this allows you to have separate profiles with separate accounts and separate applications.
Note: If you're going to use the SwitchMe app, DO NOT clone one profile to create another. Just set up a completely new profile.
Samsung UN65C8000 65-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LED 3D HDTV
List Price: $5,999.99
Sale Price: $2,599.00
Today's Bonus: 57% Off
I have had this TV for two weeks now. Woohoo, I'm glad I waited!
A little background... in October 2010 Amazon had this television at a substantial discount (
Samsung UN32EH4003 32-inch 720p 60Hz LED HDTV (Black)
So I took the plunge and finally upgraded my bedroom TV to a Flat Panel Samsung LED 720p 32" (Model UN32EH4003). I bought it during the Black Friday time frame directly from Amazon for $247.99 (Free Shipping, 14-Day Price Guarantee). I went in knowing that I was buying the cheapest 32" Samsung Flat Panel that you could buy and knew that I wasn't getting every bell and whistle, which is fine with me. My goal for this TV is to use it as a bedroom TV with a Verizon FIOS cable box and a media player (Ethernet connected, not WiFi) and watch it from about 8 feet away. No gaming, minimal DVD, etc. That's basically it.
Just for some background, I'm upgrading from an old 20" Generic Tube TV in the bedroom. I do have an HDTV in the living room, but it is also a Tube TV. There I have a 34" Sony widescreen Tube TV that I bought about 7 years ago that was basically the biggest widescreen Tube TV made that I know of. Back then a Tube TV picture was much better and cheaper than Flat Panel.
First Impression This TV looks nice. Clean front. It is extremely light. The base feels sturdy and big enough to support the TV without risk of falling over. It was simple to put together with 8 screws in the base.
Setup It has 2 HDMI's and then some regular RCA and Component hookups. My setup consists of Verizon FIOS Cable Box and a WD Live TV Media Player (to be replaced by a Boxee Box within the week, but that's another story). Plugged the Cable Box and the Media Player into each HDMI port using new Amazon Basics HDMI cables. The TV on-screen setup was easy enough to figure out without pulling out the instruction manual. Everything came up perfectly the first time with just a press of the Source button.
Picture Quality I tested the TV out with several different types of media and sources.
1) First with SD Cable. A little blocky up close, which may just be the source, but from a normal viewing distance, I the quality was just fine. The kids' cartoons were fine.
2) Second with HD Cable. This picture seemed really nice. Didn't see any kind of distortion. Seemed nearly as good as the HD Tube TV that I have downstairs from an 8 foot viewing distance. I was happy with what I saw.
3) Third with a normal 720p Video file via the Media Player. Picture was really nice in this case also. Everything seemed crisp. Very happy.
4) Finally with a fast motion 1080p Video file via the Media Player. This is where I expected the worst, but to my surprise, the fast motion scenes seemed fine also. I only tested a couple of files, so we'll see if other scenes have a problem, but so far so good.
Overall I was very happy with the picture quality. The colors on the default setting were pretty terrible, so I tried the presets and settled "Dynamic" Picture Mode and Cool Color Tone in the Picture Options setting which was pretty much perfect in all instances. Looked pretty natural with nice colors.
Viewing Angles Side viewing angles seemed really good. This was one of my pet peeves and most of my reluctance to move to a flat panel TV in the first place. Many flat panel TV's look terrible when you aren't watching it straight on. This TV seems to have much better side viewing than many of the competing TV's out there.
Screen The screen edges do have a few very faint white areas that I have noticed, but they are barely noticeable and only when the screen is completely black. I don't notice it at all when there is any kind of picture on the screen. I probably only see it because I am looking for it after reading a few comments about backlight bleed. For me, it doesn't seem like anything to worry about. I always buy SquareTrade warranties with all my electronics, so if the screen does have a problem, I will be set.
Sound Quality This is where I had the most trouble. Granted, I'm upgrading from a old TV, but out of the box, the Samsung sounded very hollow and words were hard to understand. It seemed to be completely missing any low end, not talking about booming bass, just lower frequencies seemed to be missing. I tried every sound preset that they had and all were pretty bad. I finally gave up on the presets and used the included 5 band Equalizer which finally did the trick. Per request, I posted a picture of the settings in the customer images section of this item. [THIS SECTION HAS BEEN UPDATED BELOW: I basically maxed out the low and high frequencies and made a bell curve of the middle frequencies, raising the one that controlled voices until I has happy. This seemed to do the trick just fine and I am now happy with the sound.] Granted, if you are expecting a booming surround sound feel, you're shopping for the wrong TV, but for what I think this TV is meant for, it sounds just fine.
Bells, Whistles and Other Stuff I haven't toyed with this TV too much yet. There are lots of menu settings to go through. The power button on the bottom of the TV seems pretty cool. It is like a combined button/joystick that pulls up a menu when pressed that you can use the button to move through, or just turn off the TV. I won't use it much since the Cable Box remote will do most of the work, but it is a nice to have since the actual TV remote will probably sit in a drawer once everything is set up. It does have a USB port that is supposed to play pretty much any type of media format. If this works well, it is a great feature. For me, I plan on continuing to use a dedicated Media Player, so I probably won't use this much, but for anyone else, it would save you $100 on having to buy a media player if you have a use for it.
I've only had this TV for one day, but this is what I think so far for a pro/con list.
Pros:
1) Great price ($247.99 at the time I purchased it, put a camelcamelcamel price alert on it for when the price drops again).
2) Great picture quality, especially for the price.
3) Very good side viewing angles.
4) Easy setup and connection to Cable Box and Media Player.
5) Enough picture and sound settings to get the quality you want for your individual preference.
6) Fast motion scenes seem ok so far.
7) Energy Star cost of $6-$12 per year to operate. That just sounds crazy, but I'll take it.
Cons:
1) Sound presets are terrible, but can be adjusted manually.
2) Concern about possible backlight bleed, but covering myself with an inexpensive SquareTrade warranty.
In conclusion, I'm giving this TV a 5 Star Rating based on how great it is for it's low price. I've only had this TV for one day, but I love it so far. I will continue to update this review as I use the TV more and learn more about it.
=========================
ONE MONTH UPDATE (12/26/2012):
So I've had this TV for about a month now, and I still love it. I am very happy with the video performance and I have continued to refine the audio settings. The picture is great. The viewing angles are great. I haven't had a single instance of any kind of motion blur from any fast motion scenes yet. No change in the very minor backlight bleed which I still think is no big deal. Its working great with the Verizon FIOS HD DVR and the HD Media Player (now upgraded to a Boxee Box).
The one negative regarding this TV is the sound. I posted a customer image and talked about my manual Equalizer settings in my original review. Since then, I had found that those setting were still not quite right. During many scenes, the background music seemed to overpower everything and voices were becoming impossible to understand in many instances. I kept tinkering with the Equalizer and finally settled on updated settings. It seems that the 300Hz setting was the one that was controlling most of the background music, so I dropped it way down and words became much clearer. I have now been using these updated Equalizer settings for a couple of weeks now without messing with them, so that tells me that they sound pretty good to my ears. Again, for the low price of this TV, I'm not expecting the best sound, so it hasn't had any impact to my 5 Star Rating now that I have fine tuned the settings. Attached is a link to the customer image of my updated Equalizer settings in case you want to try them.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/permalink/mo3HFIDARBG6VZT/B0078LSTWU/ref=cm_ciu_images_pl_link
Long story short, I still highly recommend this TV for the price. It seems to hover around the $250-$300 mark and it is a great deal at that price point.
=========================
FOUR MONTH UPDATE (03/28/2013):
Just a quick update. This TV is still performing great. It works great with our Verizon FIOS HD DVR and our Boxee Box Media Player. We love the picture. We have still never seen any motion blur. We have not messed with the sound settings in months so the sound is pretty good with the settings I mentioned above. Still no concerns about backlight bleed or any other quality issues. Overall, this TV is great. I love it. It makes me want to buy a new Samsung TV for my living room.
=========================
ELEVEN MONTH UPDATE (11/03/2013):
Just another quick update since we are coming up to the Black Friday/Christmas Sale time frame. The TV is still going strong. The picture still looks great and the sound is still good enough for a bedroom TV. I haven't seen any mechanical problems with the TV at all after using it for almost a year and I still have a 4 Year SquareTrade Warranty (only $35 at the time of this update) in case something does come up. This is still a great TV for the price. After 11 months, we are still extremely happy with our purchase. Still Highly Recommended!
Just for some background, I'm upgrading from an old 20" Generic Tube TV in the bedroom. I do have an HDTV in the living room, but it is also a Tube TV. There I have a 34" Sony widescreen Tube TV that I bought about 7 years ago that was basically the biggest widescreen Tube TV made that I know of. Back then a Tube TV picture was much better and cheaper than Flat Panel.
First Impression This TV looks nice. Clean front. It is extremely light. The base feels sturdy and big enough to support the TV without risk of falling over. It was simple to put together with 8 screws in the base.
Setup It has 2 HDMI's and then some regular RCA and Component hookups. My setup consists of Verizon FIOS Cable Box and a WD Live TV Media Player (to be replaced by a Boxee Box within the week, but that's another story). Plugged the Cable Box and the Media Player into each HDMI port using new Amazon Basics HDMI cables. The TV on-screen setup was easy enough to figure out without pulling out the instruction manual. Everything came up perfectly the first time with just a press of the Source button.
Picture Quality I tested the TV out with several different types of media and sources.
1) First with SD Cable. A little blocky up close, which may just be the source, but from a normal viewing distance, I the quality was just fine. The kids' cartoons were fine.
2) Second with HD Cable. This picture seemed really nice. Didn't see any kind of distortion. Seemed nearly as good as the HD Tube TV that I have downstairs from an 8 foot viewing distance. I was happy with what I saw.
3) Third with a normal 720p Video file via the Media Player. Picture was really nice in this case also. Everything seemed crisp. Very happy.
4) Finally with a fast motion 1080p Video file via the Media Player. This is where I expected the worst, but to my surprise, the fast motion scenes seemed fine also. I only tested a couple of files, so we'll see if other scenes have a problem, but so far so good.
Overall I was very happy with the picture quality. The colors on the default setting were pretty terrible, so I tried the presets and settled "Dynamic" Picture Mode and Cool Color Tone in the Picture Options setting which was pretty much perfect in all instances. Looked pretty natural with nice colors.
Viewing Angles Side viewing angles seemed really good. This was one of my pet peeves and most of my reluctance to move to a flat panel TV in the first place. Many flat panel TV's look terrible when you aren't watching it straight on. This TV seems to have much better side viewing than many of the competing TV's out there.
Screen The screen edges do have a few very faint white areas that I have noticed, but they are barely noticeable and only when the screen is completely black. I don't notice it at all when there is any kind of picture on the screen. I probably only see it because I am looking for it after reading a few comments about backlight bleed. For me, it doesn't seem like anything to worry about. I always buy SquareTrade warranties with all my electronics, so if the screen does have a problem, I will be set.
Sound Quality This is where I had the most trouble. Granted, I'm upgrading from a old TV, but out of the box, the Samsung sounded very hollow and words were hard to understand. It seemed to be completely missing any low end, not talking about booming bass, just lower frequencies seemed to be missing. I tried every sound preset that they had and all were pretty bad. I finally gave up on the presets and used the included 5 band Equalizer which finally did the trick. Per request, I posted a picture of the settings in the customer images section of this item. [THIS SECTION HAS BEEN UPDATED BELOW: I basically maxed out the low and high frequencies and made a bell curve of the middle frequencies, raising the one that controlled voices until I has happy. This seemed to do the trick just fine and I am now happy with the sound.] Granted, if you are expecting a booming surround sound feel, you're shopping for the wrong TV, but for what I think this TV is meant for, it sounds just fine.
Bells, Whistles and Other Stuff I haven't toyed with this TV too much yet. There are lots of menu settings to go through. The power button on the bottom of the TV seems pretty cool. It is like a combined button/joystick that pulls up a menu when pressed that you can use the button to move through, or just turn off the TV. I won't use it much since the Cable Box remote will do most of the work, but it is a nice to have since the actual TV remote will probably sit in a drawer once everything is set up. It does have a USB port that is supposed to play pretty much any type of media format. If this works well, it is a great feature. For me, I plan on continuing to use a dedicated Media Player, so I probably won't use this much, but for anyone else, it would save you $100 on having to buy a media player if you have a use for it.
I've only had this TV for one day, but this is what I think so far for a pro/con list.
Pros:
1) Great price ($247.99 at the time I purchased it, put a camelcamelcamel price alert on it for when the price drops again).
2) Great picture quality, especially for the price.
3) Very good side viewing angles.
4) Easy setup and connection to Cable Box and Media Player.
5) Enough picture and sound settings to get the quality you want for your individual preference.
6) Fast motion scenes seem ok so far.
7) Energy Star cost of $6-$12 per year to operate. That just sounds crazy, but I'll take it.
Cons:
1) Sound presets are terrible, but can be adjusted manually.
2) Concern about possible backlight bleed, but covering myself with an inexpensive SquareTrade warranty.
In conclusion, I'm giving this TV a 5 Star Rating based on how great it is for it's low price. I've only had this TV for one day, but I love it so far. I will continue to update this review as I use the TV more and learn more about it.
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ONE MONTH UPDATE (12/26/2012):
So I've had this TV for about a month now, and I still love it. I am very happy with the video performance and I have continued to refine the audio settings. The picture is great. The viewing angles are great. I haven't had a single instance of any kind of motion blur from any fast motion scenes yet. No change in the very minor backlight bleed which I still think is no big deal. Its working great with the Verizon FIOS HD DVR and the HD Media Player (now upgraded to a Boxee Box).
The one negative regarding this TV is the sound. I posted a customer image and talked about my manual Equalizer settings in my original review. Since then, I had found that those setting were still not quite right. During many scenes, the background music seemed to overpower everything and voices were becoming impossible to understand in many instances. I kept tinkering with the Equalizer and finally settled on updated settings. It seems that the 300Hz setting was the one that was controlling most of the background music, so I dropped it way down and words became much clearer. I have now been using these updated Equalizer settings for a couple of weeks now without messing with them, so that tells me that they sound pretty good to my ears. Again, for the low price of this TV, I'm not expecting the best sound, so it hasn't had any impact to my 5 Star Rating now that I have fine tuned the settings. Attached is a link to the customer image of my updated Equalizer settings in case you want to try them.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/permalink/mo3HFIDARBG6VZT/B0078LSTWU/ref=cm_ciu_images_pl_link
Long story short, I still highly recommend this TV for the price. It seems to hover around the $250-$300 mark and it is a great deal at that price point.
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FOUR MONTH UPDATE (03/28/2013):
Just a quick update. This TV is still performing great. It works great with our Verizon FIOS HD DVR and our Boxee Box Media Player. We love the picture. We have still never seen any motion blur. We have not messed with the sound settings in months so the sound is pretty good with the settings I mentioned above. Still no concerns about backlight bleed or any other quality issues. Overall, this TV is great. I love it. It makes me want to buy a new Samsung TV for my living room.
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ELEVEN MONTH UPDATE (11/03/2013):
Just another quick update since we are coming up to the Black Friday/Christmas Sale time frame. The TV is still going strong. The picture still looks great and the sound is still good enough for a bedroom TV. I haven't seen any mechanical problems with the TV at all after using it for almost a year and I still have a 4 Year SquareTrade Warranty (only $35 at the time of this update) in case something does come up. This is still a great TV for the price. After 11 months, we are still extremely happy with our purchase. Still Highly Recommended!
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon
List Price: $2,399.99
Sale Price: $1,605.19
Today's Bonus: 33% Off
**UPDATE**
Canon has released a II version of this lens that is also available on Amazon. It is about $300 more than this lens and is advertized to truly solve some very minor problems that the pros really care about. The new version has an 82mm front openning vs the 77mm of this lens...what that translates into is that if you have a 70-200mm "L" like I do, you can exchange filters between the lenses but not between the new 16-35II which has a larger front openning. For me, I haven't noticed any of the small items they were trying to address with the II version as I'm not a Pro's Pro and a) will keep this lens and b) have noticed that value has been retained on this lens even after the release of a more expensive update to the lens. Both are professional lenses in my mind just depends on your degree of sophistication. Hope it helps.
**ORIGINAL REVIEW**
I got this lens because I didn't really own anything close to this range except for the kit lens (good but not great and not f/2.8). I do own a 15mm Canon Fisheye but it does distort quite a bit even on the 20D and I don't like to have to correct in Photoshop each time and I wanted a wide lens. I wanted something wider, that could capture lots of light (I do allot of ambient and low light photowork) and I wanted something versatile (on a 20D this is really a 24mm to 56mm --great working range).
Pros:
1) With the 1.6x crop factor of my 20D this is really a 24 to 56mm lens. This makes it quite a bit less of a wide angle and more of a midrange lens. Consequently, it stays on my camera all the time and covers most of my daily needs. I bought this lens fully expecting it to be 24 to 56 as I wanted it to be multi purpose and at 24mm its still pretty wide.
2) I try to avoid flash as much as possible given the type of photography I do and at f/2.8 I can take some great ambient light pictures that I would not be able to do otherwise
3) At f/2.8, I can also blow the backgrounds and foregrounds out of focus. The out of focus areas are gorgeously buttery and the blokeh is very nice given the 7 blades of the shutter.
4) The color saturation is like nothing I've ever seen before except with my 70-200mm Canon "L". I was literally floored at some baby pictures I took where the colors were in two words "mind blowing". I knew the color would be great but "WOW!" With Photoshop CS2 I can "fake" saturation but its just not quite the same as the color that came out of this lens straight out of the box. Zero photoshop touchup needed.
5) Its sharp! This lens takes some amazingly sharp pictures into what I would classify as amazing. I've received numerous positive comments on the sharpness of this lens. I've tried looking at the edges to see if there's any CA or less sharpness and couldn't really find any. Maybe on a full size sensor you can tell more but I couldn't really on a 20D. I do notice that the plane of focus at f/2.8 is narrow (which is good) and I have to make sure that everything I want in focus is. The blokeh is very buttery at f/2.8. I like it quite a bit.
6) Its built like a tank. Black metal shell. Metal EF mount. Smooth manual focusing. Sturdy recessed switches. The red stripe catches the eye of photographers who know....easy to strike up conversations and learn.
7) It was surprisingly smaller and lighter than I thought it would be. About half the size of my 70-200mm Canon "L". I was expecting it to be bigger and am much happier that it wasn't. Its on my camera all the time and not a chore to carry around at all. Unless you're a very petite person.
8) Internal focusing. So the lens size doesn't change in size or turn when focusing. This is very useful when you put filters on or when you're focusing in close.
9) USM Motor. Its whisper quiet and it focuses super fast. Faster than my 70-200mm....something I'd expect but wow its fast and silent.
10) It focuses pretty close 12 inches or so. You can get close to your subject. Its not a macro lens but you can get some dramatic wide angle shots with its close focusing.
11) Its TTL2 so works very nice with my 580EX flash.
12) EF mount will grow with you. If you upgrade your camera body to a full frame camera with an EF mount, this lens will fit your new camera and you can continue to enjoy your lens investment.
Cons:
1) On a 1.6x frame size, it doesn't get into "amazing" wide category but that's not the fault of the lens. I'm marking this down as a Con but you can take it several ways. If you want to get ultra-wide on a small frame camera, you won't with this lens (although 24mm is pretty darn wide) and about your only Canon options are the 15mm fisheye which I own and think is a great specialty lens, the 10-22mm EFS Canon, and the 14mm L. The 10-22 I hear is very good but its EFS (and won't fit the full frame cameras less upgradable I think) and its not an L lens although for a non-L the 10-22 I hear is exceptional. The 14mm EF L will run you almost as much as this 16-35mm zoom. The 15mm EF Fisheye is wonderful but it is designed to distort and the distortion is visible on the 20D and even more so on full frame cameras and you need Photoshop to fix. On this 16-35mm L, if you want the f/2.8 and are ok with something like 24-56, then you won't find better for small-sensor cameras. I'm very glad I got it and, if you already have a full frame camera or upgrade at some point, you can enjoy 16mm "WOW" wide. I can only imagine the coverage I'd get on a full frame camera.
2) The hood is massive...wide but not very deep...so its a shallow hood (It has to be with the wide angle I guess). I never take it off -it keeps stray light out and is a secondary protection for the lens. I have had zero problems with lens flare.
3) The front lens element does sink in and out inside the tube (exposed but the lens case doesn't change in size). There is no protective filter to protect that front element. I bought a UV/Haze filter ($26 from Amazon) and I highly recommend you do as well to protect your investment. With the UV/Haze filter, the lens is very self contained.
4) Oh the cost....my oh my. Expensive as heck. Cost as much as my camera body --worth every penny. If its any consolation, these lenses are very hard to make and they keep their value. Your camera body might drop in value as new technology arrives but this lens will hold its value if you take care of it.
Differences, Notes, Things I've heard:
1) I have no experience with non canon lenses so I can't compare but this 16-35 is amazing.
2) Compared to other "L" lenses, it holds up and the quality is amazing when it comes to color, performance, lens construction.
3) I hear there is some Chromatic Aberation at the edges of these wide lenses (well more than the 70-200mm) but that's to be expected when you're gathering light from such wide angles and focusing it....that's got to be hard. Wide angles exhibit more CA than long telephotos. On my 16-35mm it wasn't visible to me. I imagine a Pro's pro might notice care. Anybody with less stringent requirements than a Pro's pro or extremely saavy person, couldn't even notice or care. Besides, CA on this lens is orders of magnitude less than almost any other lens.
4) I bought directly from Amazon. Ordered on a Monday got the lens the next day on Tuesday. Amazing service. Great store.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR
It's youth football season, so clearly, I needed another piece of high quality Canon glass. "Reach", and "Speed" were essential qualities for shooting football in a variety of lighting conditions, so this is the lens that I chose. With a constant aperture of f/2.8, I was able to shoot from mid-day to dusk. Toward the end of the day, under the stadium lights, I was still clicking away and getting amazing action photos! Reach, at 200mm was not a problem. I was able to capture action on both sides of the field with plenty of detail. With my EOS 7D, I have an effective maximum focal length of 320mm at f/2.8!!
Autofocus with this lens is INCREDIBLY fast and acceptably quiet. It took me a few minutes to figure out the little switch on the side though. On the barrel of the lens near the AF/MF switch is another switch labeled "1.5m infinity/3m infinity". I soon learned that switching it to the "1.5m infinity" setting allowed me to focus on "near" objects, whereas the other setting was for distant objects.
The images through this lens have turned out far better than I had expected. I am seeing an amazing amount of color, detail, and contrast. So far, I've captured backyard birds, sports, and even some flowers. I can't wait to shoot more wildlife, and am looking forward to an incredible football season!
The versatility and quality of this lens far outweigh the cost or weight. Given that this lens costs $1000 less than the mk.II version, I can easily live without Image Stabilization.
I guess the hardest decision about this purchase was where to buy it from. If I purchased direct through Amazon, I could get it for a dollar or two cheaper AND get 4% back in Amazon credit. This package through Beach Camera however, came with a bundle of goodies. Although I didn't need any of the accessories aside from the UV filter, I was nice to share camera goodies with friends and family. My daughter was particularly excited about the Bower VTSL1200 tripod and camera bag.
5-stars all the way!
Autofocus with this lens is INCREDIBLY fast and acceptably quiet. It took me a few minutes to figure out the little switch on the side though. On the barrel of the lens near the AF/MF switch is another switch labeled "1.5m infinity/3m infinity". I soon learned that switching it to the "1.5m infinity" setting allowed me to focus on "near" objects, whereas the other setting was for distant objects.
The images through this lens have turned out far better than I had expected. I am seeing an amazing amount of color, detail, and contrast. So far, I've captured backyard birds, sports, and even some flowers. I can't wait to shoot more wildlife, and am looking forward to an incredible football season!
The versatility and quality of this lens far outweigh the cost or weight. Given that this lens costs $1000 less than the mk.II version, I can easily live without Image Stabilization.
I guess the hardest decision about this purchase was where to buy it from. If I purchased direct through Amazon, I could get it for a dollar or two cheaper AND get 4% back in Amazon credit. This package through Beach Camera however, came with a bundle of goodies. Although I didn't need any of the accessories aside from the UV filter, I was nice to share camera goodies with friends and family. My daughter was particularly excited about the Bower VTSL1200 tripod and camera bag.
5-stars all the way!
Fellowes 3312501 Powershred 125Ci 18 Sheet Cross-Cut Shredder
List Price: $999.98
Sale Price: $417.15
Today's Bonus: 58% Off
After being disappointed by my previous shredder purchases, I decided to splurge on one that wouldn't jam and break. The C120-Ci is the best one I've owned, I don't need to open junk mail, the shredder eats it envelope and all with out any problems. Great if you have a large stack of mail waiting to be shredded!
Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Digital Camera 32GB Package 3
I was a little skeptic when I bought this camera due to the price of this camera, I was not sure that the photo quality will be this good. I already own a Pentax DSLR and wanted a quality point-and-shoot camera to carry around with me without the excess baggage (lenses) of a DSLR. So far the photos I have taken are exceptional in terms of quality and the zoom factor is definitely a winner. Highly recommended this point-and-shoot camera for fun photography.
Samsung UN40ES6100 40-Inch 1080p 120 CMR Slim LED HDTV (Black)
List Price: $1,099.99
Sale Price: $829.00
Today's Bonus: 25% Off
This is a great tv -lightweight, nice picture, tons of features, has surprisingly nice sound, and is exactly what I was looking for. I checked it out at Best Buy first, but you can't beat Amazon because delivery was free and faster. We have a 42" LCD smart tv in another room and its amazing how much more natural and crisp the picture is with the LED. It took 5 minutes to set it up, and it has a great swivel stand. Overall, I am really happy with this purchase.
Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC IF Macro Lens for Sigma Digital SLR
I use this on my SD14 for infrared photography. I use a Canon 50d for standard photography. The lens has a great range and is sharp and relatively fast. I really think this lens is the quality of the EX series. And it if it were 2.8 at 70mm it would probably be designated as one. Excellent build, Very sharp, Fast autofocus for not being HSM. Very much like the 18-50mm 2.8 ex lens.
Canon WP-DC48 Waterproof Case for PowerShot G15 Digital Camera
When it comes to underwater housings, you often have two options: OEM housings that lack features, or aftermarket housings that dwarf the price of the camera itself.
As underwater photography is a new venture to me, I couldn't justify buying a housing that cost two times what the camera did or more.
I've been a Canon user for years, shooting everything from ELPH 35mm cameras, SD series point and shoots, EOS DSLRs, and now my G-15. I was more than comfortable buying the OEM housing and trust this to function as deep as I can dive within recreational limits (the limits of recreational diving are 40m, just as the housing is rated).
The buttons and dials are easy to use without wearing gloves. While wearing gloves, they can be a bit tedious, but with a bit of concentration I can adjust almost all settings. The housing does not provide access to the front control dial, nor the ability to turn off the pop-up flash once engaged.
Since there is no TTL support with the camera, I am working on putting together a strobe setup utilizing fiber optics. Since the housing is made from clear polycarbonate, I will using black fabric to reduce the effect of the flash for anything other than triggering the strobe.
The housing is simple, functional, and basic. A great way to get into underwater photography without spending a fortune. But professional underwater photographers will not be excited by the lack of features.
As underwater photography is a new venture to me, I couldn't justify buying a housing that cost two times what the camera did or more.
I've been a Canon user for years, shooting everything from ELPH 35mm cameras, SD series point and shoots, EOS DSLRs, and now my G-15. I was more than comfortable buying the OEM housing and trust this to function as deep as I can dive within recreational limits (the limits of recreational diving are 40m, just as the housing is rated).
The buttons and dials are easy to use without wearing gloves. While wearing gloves, they can be a bit tedious, but with a bit of concentration I can adjust almost all settings. The housing does not provide access to the front control dial, nor the ability to turn off the pop-up flash once engaged.
Since there is no TTL support with the camera, I am working on putting together a strobe setup utilizing fiber optics. Since the housing is made from clear polycarbonate, I will using black fabric to reduce the effect of the flash for anything other than triggering the strobe.
The housing is simple, functional, and basic. A great way to get into underwater photography without spending a fortune. But professional underwater photographers will not be excited by the lack of features.
CowboyStudio Magic Carbon Fiber Handheld Hand Held Stabilizer
List Price: $265.00
Sale Price: $258.08
Today's Bonus: 3% Off
Hard to find this product anywhere else except Cowboy Studio. I live near Dallas so I felt OK buying a product I couldn't find any reviews on. I'm a first time DSLR Flyer so i'm new to the concept.
Considering I'm new to flying, the price point was perfect. It's a light rig and easy to use. The quick adjustments made it easy to learn how to balance my rig. one BIG thing is the mounting plate. I prefer this mounting plate with it's easy adjustments over the GlideCam's cheese plate. The plate on the CowboyStudio rig saves a lot of headache.
Depending on what i'm doing, I may use up to all the following:
Canon 5D Mk II
Cannon 50mm 1.4
Rode VideoMic Pro
Zoom H4n
When I'm not running with all my equipment, I use use my camera body, lens and VideoMic Pro. I use the two large weights on the bottom.
While I'm running or adjusting anything, the rig stays balanced when returning to original positions. Nothing seems to come loose causing an unbalance.
The rig is very similar, if it's not the same equipment, as the Wondlan Carbon Fiber stabilizer if you're looking for more information.
I've had no issues with the rig and it works well for me. Balances well and takes my footage to the next level. I'm very happy with the rig.
To mount the H4n I bought a 15mm Rod Rail Block to bridge the rods. I mount my H4n offset because the 5D Mk II is side-heavy when mounted.