This is a great camera. All the functions are the best to take a great photos in your vacations. All the accessories are so helpful. I recommend this bundle because its all you need to take the best photos.
Showing posts with label best nikon slr digital camera. Show all posts
Showing posts with label best nikon slr digital camera. Show all posts
Sony BRAVIA KDL46HX800 46-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D-Ready LED HDTV
I recently purchased this TV and wanted to give my thoughts. I went in looking for a 2D TV, thinking a 3D TV was out of reach.... fortunately the Thanksgiving sales were getting started, and I got this one for only a couple hundred more than what I had budgeted for a 2D TV. The reviews on this TV in 2D mode were good, so I figured 3D was almost free, and if I didn't like it, nothing lost.
The TV is quite attractive itself.... sleek and modern. It's not sporting the new "monolithic" look of the higher end Sonys, but it has a small bezel and won't looked outdated, if that sort of thng is a concern to you. It comes with a decent stand, and has all the connections you need. Some of the connections are on the back of the unit, so be advised if you plan to wall mount it.
The TV was easy to set up and get running.
In 2D, the TV is indeed impressive. SD pictures are very good, but the HD picture is pretty spectacular. Bright, crisp, great colors.... beautiful! If you're a videophile, you'll probably want to mess with the settings. I used some calibration settings a videophile friend recommended, and it does look good, but I'm not the most sensitive person to such issues.
Some reviews complain about limited viewing angles. I did notice some loss of contrast with off-angle viewing, but again, it doesn't really seem to be an issue with me, except at fairly extreme angles, where you can't see the picture anyway.
So how's the 3D? PRETTY DARNED IMPRESSIVE! I find the 3D very convincing. Unlike some other brands I sampled, I did not detect any crosstalk or ghosting. I'm really looking froward to seeing content developed with these kind of TV's in mind. The HX800 includes a 2D to 3D conversion mode which worked better than I expected, but I'll be honest and say this is mainly a gimmick to play with until more genuine 3D content is available. The glasses work well to block out ambient light, though I found them a tad tight, so I hope Sony makes a pair for goons like me with big heads. On the bright side, they include adjustment so I can get them to fit on my 8-year-old daughter and I don't have to spring for the kid's model.
The sound is only acceptable for TV speakers, but most people getting this TV will be using it with an external sound system, so no big deal. The included speakers are certainly OK for short term use, or in a small room where a home theatre set-up isn't practical. I wound up using Sony's CT150 sound bar system and I'm very happy with that.
The TV is quite attractive itself.... sleek and modern. It's not sporting the new "monolithic" look of the higher end Sonys, but it has a small bezel and won't looked outdated, if that sort of thng is a concern to you. It comes with a decent stand, and has all the connections you need. Some of the connections are on the back of the unit, so be advised if you plan to wall mount it.
The TV was easy to set up and get running.
In 2D, the TV is indeed impressive. SD pictures are very good, but the HD picture is pretty spectacular. Bright, crisp, great colors.... beautiful! If you're a videophile, you'll probably want to mess with the settings. I used some calibration settings a videophile friend recommended, and it does look good, but I'm not the most sensitive person to such issues.
Some reviews complain about limited viewing angles. I did notice some loss of contrast with off-angle viewing, but again, it doesn't really seem to be an issue with me, except at fairly extreme angles, where you can't see the picture anyway.
So how's the 3D? PRETTY DARNED IMPRESSIVE! I find the 3D very convincing. Unlike some other brands I sampled, I did not detect any crosstalk or ghosting. I'm really looking froward to seeing content developed with these kind of TV's in mind. The HX800 includes a 2D to 3D conversion mode which worked better than I expected, but I'll be honest and say this is mainly a gimmick to play with until more genuine 3D content is available. The glasses work well to block out ambient light, though I found them a tad tight, so I hope Sony makes a pair for goons like me with big heads. On the bright side, they include adjustment so I can get them to fit on my 8-year-old daughter and I don't have to spring for the kid's model.
The sound is only acceptable for TV speakers, but most people getting this TV will be using it with an external sound system, so no big deal. The included speakers are certainly OK for short term use, or in a small room where a home theatre set-up isn't practical. I wound up using Sony's CT150 sound bar system and I'm very happy with that.
Nikon Coolpix S10 6MP Digital Camera with 10x Vibration
I'm a rabid photographer of scenery, wildlife, friends, families and pets. I take pictures with tripods, while walking, from horseback, from the car, during parties, indoors, outdoors...whenever it strikes me to take a photo. I would estimate that I take at least 300 photos a month. I currently have an olympus 740 so I bought the nikon looking to get a little smaller camera with the same zoom capabilities but with image stabilization. I read the manual to this camera from cover to cover and it has lots of options to tinker with. I took more than 1000 photos in every situation I could think of and eventually ended up returning the camera because of the medium indoor low light issues.
The good:
The camera has a NICE brushed metal feel to it. Looks like it would hold up well and not show scratches easily and feels quite sturdy.
It's really comfortable and easy to hold the camera and either telescope the lens or press the shutter without straining your hand.
The LCD has great resolution and colors. Some people don't like that it doesn't have a viewfinder but I hardly use a viewfinder.
Rechargable battery (although the initial charging time is something like 8 or 10 hours, the later chargings are less).
The lens cap just flips back with an easy touch, no pulling it off and having it dangle and bounce into action shots.
The camera worked great for scenery shots during the day.
I took some great moonlight shots without the use of a tripod with this camera using some of the many, many features. My other camera could never take these shots.
I liked that there wasn't an external telescoping lens and the lens did all its telescoping inside the cylinder.
I was impressed with the shutter speed and zoom capabilities.
Image stabilization was awesome in sunlight.
What I didn't like:
I found that ANY dust on the lens created an orb in the photo and I had to keep cleaning the lens because dust would easily get into the cool snap cover.
Low indoor light made for blurry (or sometimes grainy images), even with image stabilization and I had to tinker with a lot of the settings to get half way decent photos and even then they weren't great.
If I used a flash in low light, it often whited out people's faces. My friends thought that the flash was too blinding but I can't speak for this because I didn't see it. I used tons of settings (much to my friends' frustration) to try to find a good setting and I didn't find one.
Direct sunlight caused lots of sunspots (I think because of the lens angle because the same exact shot with my olympus had no sunspot and it was seconds between shots)but you could use polarizing sunglasses over the lens for a super easy fix.
The light from the flash doesn't always bounce as one would expect. I'm not sure if it's because of the angle of the turned lens cylinder or what but it the light didn't seem to spread naturally and would end up either too focused or weirdly casted shadows would appear. Again I'd take the same photo with my olympus which has a different flash placement and the photos would turn out fine.
I took some shots of my pets indoors and they didn't like the flashing red light the camera uses for measuring/focus in low light.
I had a lot of color issues (mostly a yellowing of the images) under flourescent lights in a lot of low light photos but I could fix them Adobe photoshop.
This could have been a bad camera but just in case you buy this and have the same issues, you'll know it's not just you :)
The good:
The camera has a NICE brushed metal feel to it. Looks like it would hold up well and not show scratches easily and feels quite sturdy.
It's really comfortable and easy to hold the camera and either telescope the lens or press the shutter without straining your hand.
The LCD has great resolution and colors. Some people don't like that it doesn't have a viewfinder but I hardly use a viewfinder.
Rechargable battery (although the initial charging time is something like 8 or 10 hours, the later chargings are less).
The lens cap just flips back with an easy touch, no pulling it off and having it dangle and bounce into action shots.
The camera worked great for scenery shots during the day.
I took some great moonlight shots without the use of a tripod with this camera using some of the many, many features. My other camera could never take these shots.
I liked that there wasn't an external telescoping lens and the lens did all its telescoping inside the cylinder.
I was impressed with the shutter speed and zoom capabilities.
Image stabilization was awesome in sunlight.
What I didn't like:
I found that ANY dust on the lens created an orb in the photo and I had to keep cleaning the lens because dust would easily get into the cool snap cover.
Low indoor light made for blurry (or sometimes grainy images), even with image stabilization and I had to tinker with a lot of the settings to get half way decent photos and even then they weren't great.
If I used a flash in low light, it often whited out people's faces. My friends thought that the flash was too blinding but I can't speak for this because I didn't see it. I used tons of settings (much to my friends' frustration) to try to find a good setting and I didn't find one.
Direct sunlight caused lots of sunspots (I think because of the lens angle because the same exact shot with my olympus had no sunspot and it was seconds between shots)but you could use polarizing sunglasses over the lens for a super easy fix.
The light from the flash doesn't always bounce as one would expect. I'm not sure if it's because of the angle of the turned lens cylinder or what but it the light didn't seem to spread naturally and would end up either too focused or weirdly casted shadows would appear. Again I'd take the same photo with my olympus which has a different flash placement and the photos would turn out fine.
I took some shots of my pets indoors and they didn't like the flashing red light the camera uses for measuring/focus in low light.
I had a lot of color issues (mostly a yellowing of the images) under flourescent lights in a lot of low light photos but I could fix them Adobe photoshop.
This could have been a bad camera but just in case you buy this and have the same issues, you'll know it's not just you :)
Canon Kiss X5 (EOS 600D / Rebel T3i) with Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS
i have just received this camera today. this camera's picture is really fantastic and fascinating.
Picture quality is really quite good. HD video is really nice. But remember for HD movies recording use large-capacity SD card rated SD speed Class 6 or higher unless movies can't record!!! At first i can record for 5 to 8 sec duration due to poor writing speed of my SD card. So, i was nervous as i added class 4 8GB SD. Finally it was ok. with class 10 SD card :P
I would recommend best buy and best worth DSLR in canon..
Camera setting are extremely simple and easy to understand for entry level shooter.
Just buy it !!!!!!! You won't regret..... around 1000 $ is worth !!
Picture quality is really quite good. HD video is really nice. But remember for HD movies recording use large-capacity SD card rated SD speed Class 6 or higher unless movies can't record!!! At first i can record for 5 to 8 sec duration due to poor writing speed of my SD card. So, i was nervous as i added class 4 8GB SD. Finally it was ok. with class 10 SD card :P
I would recommend best buy and best worth DSLR in canon..
Camera setting are extremely simple and easy to understand for entry level shooter.
Just buy it !!!!!!! You won't regret..... around 1000 $ is worth !!
Olympus Zuiko EC-20 2x Teleconverter for Olympus Digital SLR
A 2X teleconverter requires a lot. Not only does it have to have good optics itself; it has to link well to the primary lens, supporting quick focus and aperture settings. It requires high end optics on the far end of the teleconverter, as well. The Zuiko 2X teleconverter easily meets these requirements.
Used with the Olympus E-3 and the Zuiko 300mm f2.8 lens over the course of two weeks in the field, it performed flawlessly. Autofocus, even on birds in flight, was quick and reliable. I've cropped photos taken with the teleconverter and my 300mm by as much as 50% and not been able to find any defects or flaws. The focus is crisp across the image. Because the Olympus System uses Four Thirds technology, with a much smaller sensor than most digital SLRs, the potential for problems is probably higher. I encountered none.
This is a fine piece of optics that does exactly what you ask of it. Highly recommended.
Used with the Olympus E-3 and the Zuiko 300mm f2.8 lens over the course of two weeks in the field, it performed flawlessly. Autofocus, even on birds in flight, was quick and reliable. I've cropped photos taken with the teleconverter and my 300mm by as much as 50% and not been able to find any defects or flaws. The focus is crisp across the image. Because the Olympus System uses Four Thirds technology, with a much smaller sensor than most digital SLRs, the potential for problems is probably higher. I encountered none.
This is a fine piece of optics that does exactly what you ask of it. Highly recommended.
HP Mini 110-4250NR 10.1-Inch Netbook (Black)
I am very confused with all the recent 1 star reviews of this netbook. I bought this a couple weeks ago, and so far i love it. I recently went on vacation and brought this with me just to get used to it as i plan to use this on campus when i need my own computer for college.
1. The stock ram amount is not enough, plan to upgrade before you even try to use it. I knew this before i bought it and bought a 2GB stick for 10$ on amazon. I replaced it in under a minute before i even booted it up. I can run chrome, steam and office no problem now.
2. People saying the processor is slow? No.... You must being using this wrong, because mine has no problem doing internet. yet you say yours is slow on internet? You sure its not just slow wifi? lol
3. I can run Grand Theft Auto San Andreas on this on low or medium setting with basically no lag. This thing is a tiny little netbook and you can run GTA SA on it. Saying its slow is no argument for not knowing how to use a computer...
I always have Coretemp running (usually in 50's [Degrees C]) to tell me how hot its getting and CPU meter to tell me how the CPU and Ram are doing. Never any problems with what i do on it and ive tried more than the average netbook user im betting. lol
Basically i am very happy with my purchase, once again HP has out done themselves....
Also the Space key doesn't always work, which is kinda true. But you need to hit it in the middle, and if you do that it works every time. The corners dont cut it on this tiny keyboard lol.
1. The stock ram amount is not enough, plan to upgrade before you even try to use it. I knew this before i bought it and bought a 2GB stick for 10$ on amazon. I replaced it in under a minute before i even booted it up. I can run chrome, steam and office no problem now.
2. People saying the processor is slow? No.... You must being using this wrong, because mine has no problem doing internet. yet you say yours is slow on internet? You sure its not just slow wifi? lol
3. I can run Grand Theft Auto San Andreas on this on low or medium setting with basically no lag. This thing is a tiny little netbook and you can run GTA SA on it. Saying its slow is no argument for not knowing how to use a computer...
I always have Coretemp running (usually in 50's [Degrees C]) to tell me how hot its getting and CPU meter to tell me how the CPU and Ram are doing. Never any problems with what i do on it and ive tried more than the average netbook user im betting. lol
Basically i am very happy with my purchase, once again HP has out done themselves....
Also the Space key doesn't always work, which is kinda true. But you need to hit it in the middle, and if you do that it works every time. The corners dont cut it on this tiny keyboard lol.
Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX
Sunset, thanks for the fast shipment.
I have one feedback to give:
The order status tracking package wasn't updated at real time.
My e-mails are replied with the message: "I can't solve your problem, please call for the number...". For me, e-mail follow-up it's better than phone calls.
But it worked, so i'm very happy with the product.
The lenses are fantastic. The filters works well. The macro lens, are not great, but are not so bad. 100% satisfied.
Thanks again,
(sorry for bad english, i'm learning)
Rama,
Brasil.
I have one feedback to give:
The order status tracking package wasn't updated at real time.
My e-mails are replied with the message: "I can't solve your problem, please call for the number...". For me, e-mail follow-up it's better than phone calls.
But it worked, so i'm very happy with the product.
The lenses are fantastic. The filters works well. The macro lens, are not great, but are not so bad. 100% satisfied.
Thanks again,
(sorry for bad english, i'm learning)
Rama,
Brasil.
Canon EOS 7D 9 Lens Deluxe Kit with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II
Great camera, great price. It's a good package to start with, and has good basic
starter lenses. It also came with a nice bag. Everything arrived promptly. I'm very satisfied with my Canon 7D camera and package.
starter lenses. It also came with a nice bag. Everything arrived promptly. I'm very satisfied with my Canon 7D camera and package.
Uniden Public Safety Receiver (HOMEPATROL)
List Price: $499.99
Sale Price: $439.26
Today's Bonus: 12% Off
The Uniden Home Patrol-1 is an amazing piece of technology. A touch screen scanner that requires very little user input, and has the entire US frequency database in its memory. For the most part, the HP-1 make scanning as simple as can be. You hook up the scanner to your PC, and run the Uniden Sentinel Software. The software downloads the latest frequency database from RadioReference. You upload the the database to the scanner, and you're good to go. Just enter your Zip Code, City, or GPS coordinates, and the HP-1 will scan all the agencies in your area. You can even hook up an optional GPS unit to automatically follow your location. You set the range of the scanner from 0-30 miles to limit how far away the agencies are that the scanner will attempt to scan. You can also select the type of agencies you wish to listen to. I find the "location" setting to be hit or miss. It seems to think that towns that are 40 miles from me, are actually less than 1 mile from me. It also thinks agencies in my own town are more than 10 miles away. This is due to the database, not the scanner. The database has been getting updated on a daily basis, to get it more accurate and up to date. I find that setting up your own "Favorites Lists" works well in listening to what you want to.
As for the hardware itself, the HP-1 is a very solid performer. The receiver has great sensitivity and selectivity. I've listened to APCO-25 digital systems, EDACS, and Motorola analog trunking systems. All of them were configured correctly without any user input. Audio quality is good, but not great. It is about what I expected from a very small speaker. The small SMA duck antenna performs surprisingly well, especially on UHF. The touch screen is bright and easy to use. Battery life with the included 2300mAh batteries is good. I get over 8 hours on a single charge. The scanner is capable of replaying and recording transmissions. A very cool feature. The scanner also comes with a home charger/adapter, car charger/adapter, and home stand. The stand is a nice touch. The HomePatrol-1 is a nice addition to my collection of scanners. People that don't like to program their scanners, or would like to use it in different areas, will probably enjoy it also.
Update: A few months ago, Uniden introduced a new "Extreme Upgrade" firmware update for the Home Patrol-1. They are charging $100 for this upgrade, and it adds some new features to the scanner. So basically in order for you get all the features of the Home Patrol-1, you now have to spend $600, or you'll have a crippled $500 radio. In my opinion, this is a dangerous practice. Many in the Amatuer Radio Community are outraged about this, but everyone has to decide for themselves whether or not they have an issue with this. As a matter of principle, I will not be paying another $100 for a firmware upgrade, and I lowered my rating from 5 stars to 4 stars. I will also think twice about purchasing another Uniden radio since I'll never know whether or not Uniden will be charging for future upgrades.
Sony HDR-PJ760VE HD 96GB Flash Memory - PAL - Camcorder
Bought for my brother in law, camera is light has tons of options to modify and full auto if you want.Great image stabilization.Great low light performance and great sound that suprised me most.Fits in his hand well.Camcorder powers up when you open up LCD or pull out viewfinder, nice feature.He is very happy with it and so am I.Projector was a WOW factor.
Adorama was great to ship it well packed in 2 days as promised.
Adorama was great to ship it well packed in 2 days as promised.
Western Digital WD Scorpio Black 750 GB SATA 3 GB/s 7200 RPM 16
List Price: $114.99
Sale Price: $71.95
Today's Bonus: 37% Off
"Free-fall sensor As an added layer of protection, if the drive (or the system it's in) is dropped while in use, WD's free-fall sensor detects that the drive is falling and, in less than 200 milliseconds, parks the head to help prevent damage and data loss."
Model: WD3200BJKT HAS this sensor and is a little more expensive. Worth it , In my opinion.
Model: WD3200BEKT does NOT have this sensor. Retailers are not very clear about this.
Canon EF35mm f/2 IS USM
List Price: $599.00
Sale Price: $549.00
Today's Bonus: 8% Off
I want to contribute a review because nowhere have I found detailed comments on the usability of the focus ring for shooting video. I could have done with a review like this before taking the plunge.
The focus ring is very smooth and a little tighter than other Canon focus rings. In real world use, the tightness doesn't hamper smooth focus pulls because the diameter of the focus ring is large enough to achieve very smooth movement with a gentle start and finish. There is no play in the focus ring at all. It's very well put together. In comparison with the EF 24-105 f4 IS L lens the 35mm f2 IS is smoother, a little tighter but therefore with no play what-so-ever.
The smoothest focus rings I've ever used are made by Olympus on their m4/3 prime lenses. The Canon EF 35mm f2 IS is equally smooth but with a little more resistance and therefore not as fluid.
The image stabilisation for video is good. I would rate it at 3.5 out of 5. In comparison, I would rate the EF 24-105mm f4 IS L lens image stabilisation as 4.5 out of 5. The EF 24-105mm f4 IS L lens is much more effective in comparison. I can hold a very steady shot even at 105mm. It really is incredible for hand held video use. Simply throw away the silly frankenrigs.
The 35mm f2 IS has far quieter IS than the 24-105mm f4 IS L. The zoom lens is pretty quiet and very usable but I can only hear the IS on the 35mm if I put it up to my ear.
If you're looking for a 35mm lens for handheld video this is it! There simply isn't anything else.
For stills. It's razor sharp, very fast, accurate and quiet to auto focus. Worth every penny.
Nikon F3 HP SLR Film Camera Body 35mm F3/HP High Eyepoint
I owned several of these over the years and loved them. My favourite was a mint F3hp I bought on ebay. Had a couple of titanium bodies go through my ebay trading days and they were a work of stunning beauty--especially the champagne colour bodies. Smoother winder than the F2 and as solid as a tank. The HP viewfinder was excellent and if you looked through one today after your DSLR it would be quite a shock. Pity the film days are over as it was a lot more fun than digital and the stuff was much better made. And they wouldn't change specs every 6 months but about every 6 or 7 years. Nothing like the feel of a F2 or F3 and those awesome manual Nikkors that lasted forever and produced stunning results. Remember the 105mm f1.8? Or the razor sharp 28mm f2.8 Ais? Those were the days my friends! The 70-80's were the decades that Nikon ruled the world. As soon as they started building their stuff in China the mantle fell to Canon (and their MIJ equipment). Things may get better in digital world as the nostalgia is creepng back with Fuji X series and monster expensive Leica and especially Olympus and their OMD-5. Maybe Nikon ought to release a F3d?
ASUS S56CA-DH51 15.6-Inch Ultrabook (Black)
List Price: $699.00
Sale Price: $589.95
Today's Bonus: 16% Off
I purchased this computer (S56CA-WH31) for my son to use at college, and have been configuring it for him for the past couple of days. Here are a few of my impressions so far:
The overall construction is very good except for one issue the DVD tray extends out from the side of the laptop by about 1 mm. One on-line reviewer noticed that the fit of the DVD tray was off in his review model also, but I am surprised that this got through into the production models. It is not a big issue, but it definitely detracts from the look of the aluminum body.
The screen is bright and clear and has good viewing angles. The keyboard is nice and big and works well with my hunt and peck. The large scroll pad is nice, and I am liking the imbedded buttons more than I thought I would.
The operating system is Windows 8 core (not pro). There is an ASUS-branded software DVD player, so I didn't have to upgrade to pro to get the windows media pack for DVD play as I feared I might have to. There is no utility to create recovery DVD's even though the paper manual refers to one called AI recovery. There is a Bluetooth module, so the "reviewer" who says that there isn't one is wrong.
The 500 GB hard drive is partitioned into a number of system and recovery partitions and a C: system partition of about 186 GB along with a D: data "drive" of about 258 GB. I used the Windows 8 disk manager to first remove the D: partition, expand the system "drive" to around 400 GB, and then used the rest of the space for a 39 GB D: drive just in case the recovery software expects to find the D: drive there.
I installed Start8 from Stardock to get a start menu back on the desktop, and have ordered a 4GB SODIMM to expand the memory up to 8 GB ($25) I figured more memory would be useful especially with the imbedded HD-4000 graphics.
I don't know what the reviewer who was complaining that this was a "slow" computer was talking about. It has a windows experience score of 4.8, which is not bad for an I-3 without turbo-boost and with imbedded graphics. It won't play highly graphics intensive games, but that's not what I bought it for, not should you expect it from the online specs.
Hope this is good enough for an initial review.
Sony BDV-N7100W 5.1 Channel 3D Blu-ray Disc Home Theater System
List Price: $599.99
Sale Price: $528.00
Today's Bonus: 12% Off
Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program For years, Bose has been making an all-in-one amplifier/receiver/media player package with an array of the iconic cube speakers. Now Sony has a similar model. Everything you need (minus the TV and an HDMI cable) is in the box, all the way down to the speaker cables. I can see the appeal of such a system to those who are not technologically proficient. Since that is the intended consumer, I will attempt to make this review as free from jargon as possible.
1) Setup
The installation was quite simple. All the cables are labeled and color-coded so that virtually anyone can install this without hassle. The front channels, center speaker, and subwoofer plug into the back while the "wireless" rear channels plug into an external amplifier that you position in the back of your room.
Once the proper connections are made, you just follow the on-screen directions to configure everything else. This amounts to making a network connection through either the built-in wifi or through an ethernet connection and calibrating the speaker levels. Interestingly, Sony includes a microphone with a long cable that plugs into the back of the unit and stretches to wherever your optimum listening position happens to be. In my case, my room layout doesn't allow me to sit in a position equidistant from the two surround channels, so the Sony unit automatically detected this and attenuated the volume on one of the rear channels to compensate for me sitting closer to it. It's actually pretty cool.
Once I went through the basic setup, there were a few software and firmware updates to install. These took about ten minutes to run, all in all. After that, I tested out the system with a Blu-ray disc and discovered that the dialogue emerging from the center channel was a bit low. Happily, this was an easy thing to adjust. Sony includes a nice menu system with good graphics to help you pick the speaker that is too quiet and change its output level. Overall, I am very pleased with the menu system. It's about as good as you'll find for a company that isn't necessarily in the business of designing stunning graphical user interfaces.
A word about the "wireless" speakers. I have no idea why companies describe speakers as "wireless." Unless you have a battery-powered speaker, it WILL need power and that means speaker cable. The only benefit here is that you don't have to run long strands of speaker cable from the front of your room to the back. Otherwise, both rear channels are 100% wired, plus you have the external amplifier that needs to be near a wall outlet. If I seem to be harping on this point, it's because people like my mother (a confirmed cable hater) always see systems advertised as having "wireless" speakers and she always thinks that, somehow, there are no cables at all.
2) The Receiver/Blu-ray Player
I must give Sony recognition for designing a nice looking unit. The touch screen is cool and the solid top slides across the top to reveal a top-loading Blu-ray spindle. It looks cool, but how does it function?
In a word, flawlessly. I read that the Blu-ray player allows you to "begin watching your movies in seconds," and I was skeptical. Any Blu-ray player I've ever encountered takes anywhere from five to ten minutes to go from disc startup to main menu. It's so annoying. There are FBI warnings, anti-piracy warnings, trailers that you can't chapter-skip, advertisements, and all sorts of other crap. It's infuriating and makes me hate the Blu-ray format. HOWEVER, this unit allows you to skip all that! It's amazing; utterly amazing. I tried six different Blu-ray discs and all but one allowed me to skip everything--even the FBI warning. "Inception" wouldn't let me skip right to the main menu, but I could chapter-skip through the previews and warnings. This is reason enough to justify a five-star review.
The various network functions worked flawlessly as well. Bluetooth allowed me to stream music through the system via my smartphone, Amazon's video service worked well, YouTube was fine, and I even tried the Internet browser. It's idiotic to try to navigate the web through your TV using a conventional remote, but hey you can do it. Netflix was great. The Sony interface for Netflix is very nice and provides a good mix of information with a clean layout. It's essentially the same as the second generation Roku box, but a bit sleeker. I still prefer the way my AppleTV handles Netflix, but this is a close second.
The YouTube interface isn't quite as good as the Netflix interface. It's a bit clunky and it uses a keyboard layout that is nonsensical. If you have to use a standard remote to enter in words, it makes a lot more sense to have the letters in a grid rather than a long horizontal line. It's not horrible, but it could be better. On that same note, every interface has a different keyboard layout. It's not a huge deal, but it would be nice if the onscreen keyboard always looked the same.
Finally, my one complaint. Yes, this system is designed to be simple and fool-proof, but the only available inputs are HDMI inputs. That means if you have some sort of archaic device like a Wii, you have no way to use it with this system. Sony does provide a couple of HDMI inputs, but some devices still need to make an RCA connection.
3) The Speakers
The speakers are decent. They have plastic bodies, so they feel a bit like over-sized computer speakers. Build quality aside, they do sound bigger than one would imagine. The system can play quite loud, and when you're watching certain kinds of movies, loudness is actually a pretty important factor.
The sound is more suited for movies than music, as one would expect. There is a lot of treble and a lot of bass so that everything sounds very bright and loud. This makes movie soundtracks pop, but when listening to music (especially acoustic music like jazz and Classical/Romantic/Baroque/whatever), the midrange is underwhelming and makes the music sound cheap. There are some built-in EQ functions so that you can get use a flatter frequency response curve, which sounds much better for music.
You can get a much more balanced sound using the Energy 5.1 Take Classic. That speaker system is superior in every category (e.g., build quality, neutrality of sound, size, usability for music) and it typically costs about half what the Sony system costs (although you'll need your own receiver and Blu-ray player, which will ultimately make it slightly more expensive). The downside is that if you're uncomfortable around technology, the Sony system is slightly easier to manage when you consider set up and the purchase of a separate receiver and Blu-ray player. Basically, if you're okay making a few simple speaker connections, I highly recommend the Energy Take Classic. Otherwise, the Sony is a reasonable substitute, provided you're using the system mainly for movies instead of music.
4) Ease of Use
As I mentioned above, the system is very easy to set up, and the onscreen menus are well organized and easy to navigate. Because you only need to make a few cable connections (most of which are color coded), installation ought to be approachable to virtually anyone who can handle a minimal amount of reading and follow the largely pictorial setup instructions.
The real test though was having my mother navigate the menu system and try out the various functions. My parents stream Netflix through their Blu-ray player and the menu system is confusing enough that she can't really get from the startup screen to the Netflix menu on her own. Yeah, it's not that hard, but she's utterly befuddled by technology. Interestingly, Sony includes a special "Netflix" button on the remote that allows you to jump straight there. With that helpful feature, I watched my own mother power up the Sony unit, open up Netflix, select a title, and start watching. I'm sure some of you will identify with this either as technophobes or as children of technophobes. It really is a well-designed system. In fact, my parents ended up liking it so much, they bought one for themselves, which allowed them to remove a big stack of audio equipment and a tangled mess of cables.
5) Overall
I highly recommend the Sony BDV-N7100W system. It's simple, but not simplistic. It works well, it has a nice array of useful features, the speakers are decent, and it's easy to set up and use. And most of all, the fact that the Blu-ray player allows you to skip to the main menu (or at least chapter skip) really lessens the usual aggravation that accompanies Blu-ray discs. This is an excellent product all around.
Boston Acoustics SoundWareXS5.1B 5.1 Surrond Speaker System
List Price: $499.99
Sale Price: $499.00
Today's Bonus: $0.99 Off
I purchased this Boston Acoustics 5.1 system to go in my new projector room. I was looking for a smaller speaker package to get the most out of my projection wall without speakers sticking out. The speaker system comes with really nice speaker mounts that were really easy to install and the system doesn't stick out at all in the room but still manages to deliver excellent sound for movies and sporting events. I did purchase another boston center channel speaker to get 6.1 sound out of my system which I would recommend to others wanting the extra back speaker.
Toshiba Qosmio X875-Q7390 17.3-Inch 3D Laptop (Black Widow
List Price: $1,949.99
Sale Price: Price Unavailable
Today's Bonus: 14% Off
I just have to briefly review this laptop to put some of the bad reviews at bay. I just got this baby yesterday and it has blown me away. The screen is brilliant, the speed is unreal, and the 3D is awesome. Even the speakers are top notch. I'll gush more about it later, first I want to let future buyers know the few minor quirks:
Yes, the secondary hard drive makes a small clicking noise. However, what you will want to do ANYWAY when buying such a rig, is replace the PRIMARY hard drive slot with a solid state drive (I used a 240GB Intel 520). THEN, put the original primary drive (the hybrid one) in the secondary slot. Now, enjoy face-melting mind-bending speeds without any clicking noise. Now your boot time is maybe 10 seconds with a fresh windows 8 install.
Yes, battery life is very short. It is not unexpected with such a powerhouse of a computer. If you need to go more than probably 2 hours without an outlet, this beast is not for you. This is not an ultra-portable machine. It falls more in the desktop-replacement category.
Yes, you can watch your 3D movies (even MKVs) with this laptop. You will probably want to follow a brief tutorial (google iradar mkv 3d nvidia) on using an application called Stereoscopic Player. Choose "Sensio" in Layout settings and "NVIDIA 3d Vision" in playback methods. Make the video full screen with your glasses on and enjoy. Nvidia also offers an application to play 3d video.
I will update this review with any other notable findings that have not been mentioned by other reviewers.
UPDATE 1: I have been casually using the laptop for a couple weeks now. I want to note a couple cool things. The "Qosmio" on the back of the screen glows red in the dark which I JUST noticed. The screen is REALLY bright. On maximum brightness, it is brighter than my 58" plasma TV which is on vivid setting. The laptop has not gotten hot like I thought it might, even after hours of watching 3D video. However, I have not tested the temperature with intensive gaming which could produce different results.
I think it is important for future buyers to really consider the size of the laptop, as well as the massive charger when considering this machine. It is considerably heavier than the average laptop, weighing in at 7.5 lbs. You will almost certainly need to carry the charger as well, so add another 2 lbs. More to come later.