Yamaha YTS-F500BL Digital Sound Projector and TV Floor Stand

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $549.95
Sale Price: $499.95
Today's Bonus: 9% Off

This stand works great, it takes about 1hour to assemble. The whole exterior of the stand is very well made and worth it for the price. I do like the addition of the smokey glass shelf at the bottom. ( I have it uninstalled so I can fit my subwoofer there)

All in all very pleased. Take note, the package is very heavy and you will have an unbelievable amount of cardboard to recycle when your finished unpacking everything. Haha. Ever since the day I bought my Yamaha YSP 4000 sound projector 10 months ago, I have felt ever so attracted to this "minimalist-sexy-technology-fetish" that's like growin on me.. I just love the clean smooth lines of the sound projector with the tv installed on the stand. When my visitors come over to the house, they listen to the sound system & then one says "It sounds like the music is coming from the walls all around me!" I just play it cool, letting the mystery of the YSP 4000 sound projection stupefy them. =). Before buying this stand my electronic equipment was on an ikea entertainment stand. "Too much furniture" "Felt to cheap!" The minimalist approach is "Less quantity More Quality". I agree. The stand does its job well, you will be pleased. Get rid of your hefty furniture and go minimalist style, you wont regret it. These days everything sleek and minimalist has a hefty price tag, try and see if you can purchase on ebay for cheaper, if not here..

Have a great day,

Peace and Love to all

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Q-See QT4516-1TB 16Channel DVR Real Time CIF/D1 Resolution H.264

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $599.00
Sale Price: $446.82
Today's Bonus: 25% Off

got it delivered at 3pm and had it setup in two hours. Works great, can watch and record from my phone or tablet. Very straightforward setup and intuitive user interface.

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Samsung UN60D8000 60-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D LED HDTV (Silver)

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $4,299.99
Sale Price: $2,197.00
Today's Bonus: 49% Off

This review is a little long winded. Skip to the bottom for just the pros and cons. Or, keep reading to waste 10 minutes of your life.

Over the last 5 years, I have been using a 58" Panasonic Plasma TV. Not a bad TV, but not the greatest either. It was only 1080i, it got hot pretty fast (which made the room hot and the air condition kick on too often), and the dimensions were weird (I looked at entertainment centers that should fit a 60" TV, but the TV still wouldn't fit.). I felt an upgrade was in order.

I'll have to admit, shopping for a TV was pretty fun. A lot of work though. The research was overwhelming at times. Websites upon websites, magazines, books, different people's inputs, salesmen trying to sell you different things depending on which store you went to, etc. I narrowed it down to one of many Sony HDTVs or a Samsung C or D series. After narrowing it down to those 2 brands, it was a little easier. I went to about 4 different Fry's Electronics and 7 different Best Buys to check it out in different situations. After that, it came down to the UN55D8000 (boy, did I memorize those numbers). To make the decision easier, I was looking on Amazon, and to my amazement, they had it for $500 less that everyone else, plus free shipping. Score!

With the free shipping, it usually takes a little longer. I would say, from the time the order was placed, until it got to my front door, it took about 1.5 weeks. It came delivered from Home Direct, USA and had no issues with delivery. They were going to set up the TV, but I told them not to, since my entertainment center hadn't come in yet. I opened up the box, put the TV on a soft cloth (our bed's comforter) and installed the stand. Eight screws, piece of cake. I connected the Directv receiver and a PS3. There are a few settings you will set in the beginning when the TV turns on. Takes about 2 minutes, literally. After that, the fun begins! Going from 1080i to 1080p is a huge difference! I had a recording of Chuck on the DVR and it almost looked live. I also watched some regular satellite programming and even the non-HD channels looked amazing.

After wiping the drool off the floor, I wanted to check out the 3D part of the TV. I popped in the free copy of Shrek the 3rd in the PS3, put on the glasses and waited to be amazed. Aside from the amazing colors, it looked exactly like 2D! WTH?! Then, I remember reading somewhere that the PS3 does indeed play 3D movies, BUT with an upgrade. I waited about 30 minutes for the upgrade to finish. After that, loaded up the dvd again, and there was the movie with that funky 3D image. Hey wait, I have 3D glasses on, how come I see that. Oh, oops. Batteries need to be installed in the glasses. Finally! The 3D image was awesome! Seriously, watching TV in 3D is amazing. I can't wait `til there's more media in 3D. As it stands right now, the only real movies in 3D are either documentaries or cartoons, with the exception of a few regular movies (i.e. Resident Evil, Step Up 3, etc.)

I just set it up last night, so I can't give you a whole lot more information. But, even if I did have more time, I don't think I can give you the detailed specs that you might be looking for. I'm not an expert on home theater. Here's an overview of pros and cons:

PROS:

* The lack of a bigger bezel really does make a difference. Not only aesthetically, but in terms of functionality, too (better 3D viewing. It looks like you're looking thru a window.).

* Images are spectacular. Whether it be regular programming, HDTV programming, or Blu-Ray.

* Price on Amazon was very good!

* Delivery was pain-free.

* A lot of settings options, so you can set up the TV to your preference and the viewing scenario (i.e. movie, standard, etc.)

* 3D movie watching is stunning! I just wish Panasonic didn't have exclusive rights on Avatar.

CONS:

* SmartTV is a cool feature. But, not a necessity. I really doubt that I'll Facebook or Tweet from the TV.

* Audio isn't great, but it's adequate. I wasn't really expecting much from a flat screen TV.

* Did not come with the touch-screen remote as was supposed to be the case in the beginning of the year.

* Have to mail in the vouchers (or register online) in order to get the 3D glasses. True, you do get a 3D starter kit with this TV, which has the glasses, but those glasses are a little different and use batteries. Also, you have to send out to get the free copy of Shrek Forever and Megamind. I really shouldn't complain, though, since these are free.

* Needs a more detailed manual on how to use most of the features. The manual it comes with is thick, but it's just because it's the same thing in different languages.

Sorry for the long review. Us Yelpers write a lot of gibberish, don't we?

UPDATE: After playing around with the TV a little more this weekend, I noticed that the top of the screen had some light flickering (around where the bezel meets the screen and it was about 1/16" tall and went almost across the whole TV. I'm hoping it's not the "edge lighting.") It only did this on some channels on Directv. Most channels were fine and Blu-Ray was fine. I'm thinking it's either the receiver or possibly the cheap HDMI cable. I have a Monster M1000 series cable coming in later this week, so I'll switch it out and update.

Also, there has been talk all over online about people having problems pairing the remote. I had zero problem and did it about 5 feet away from the TV.

One last thing, one of the glasses in the free 3D kit didn't seem to work. I changed out batteries and nothing. Then, the next morning, I tried it again, but this time turning off the bluetooth in my phone, and it worked. Whether this had an effect on it, I don't know. But, just thought I'd throw that out there.

BTW, this weekend, I watched Tangled in 3D and played MLB2K11 on the PS3...... WOW! I'll have to admit, I liked 3D, but I thought it was just a novelty. No way. 3D is much different now than when we had those blue and red glasses. It changes the whole experience.

UPDATE #2: Didn't have to do anything to get the line gone. It just went away one day.

Also, I finally got the 3D glasses from the voucher that's in the TV. Unfortunately, they are the 3300s and not the 3700s that I kept seeing from people at CES. I won't knock the rating down, but I am a little disappointed that the glasses and the remote that were advertised earlier in the year didn't come with the unit, nor even thru mail. Also, the charger for the glasses is $199! No, thanks. I'll just charge it using the USB cable.

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Dell Inspiron 660s i660s-3848BK Desktop

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $400.00
Sale Price: $383.98
Today's Bonus: 4% Off

It's a Dell and I have always found them to be reliable.

It has tons of memory, some added software for a trial basis such as Office 2010, Skype and Media software I never heard of, Cyberlink they call it. Since it's Win 8, which is the hardest part. The cons are that to open or close the DVD drive, you have to get to control panel. NO button, only power button exists. But for the most part, I only need this machine for email and some creative writing. It was less than $500, so it is worth the price. It has 6 USB 2.0 ports and 4 USB 3.0 ports.

It has everything as described.

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Shure PGXD14/93-X8 Wireless Microphones

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $586.00
Sale Price: $469.00
Today's Bonus: 20% Off

I was very impressed by the sound quality and clarity after testing it. It does sound like a wired mic as has been said. One great handy improvement from the PGX version is that the body pack in this one has a rotating gain control on its side which can be very useful because it works as a regular volume control you can adjust at will. Highly recommended.

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Nikon D60 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S

Customer Ratings:

I've been using Canon PowerShot point-and-shoot digital cameras for the past 6 years, and because they're so small, portable, and unobtrusive, I've ended up taking a lot more photos that I ever did, because I had my camera with me. The good thing is that I've taken a lot more pictures, and most of them have been very good (the camera gets much of the credit here). But the bad thing is that I started to reach the limits of what a point-and-shoot camera can do.

The biggest problems I had with my compact point-and-shoot camera was the lag between shots and the generally poor performance in low-light settings. For most shots, these weren't big problems, but when they were a problem, they were a huge problem, and there's not much you can to solve it without moving to a better camera. I don't think I'm the first person to reach a brick wall when using compact digital cameras, which is why there are now some excellent options that don't cost a fortune.

After reading a lot of reviews for digital SLR cameras online, I narrowed it down to two choices: the Sony A300 or the Nikon D60. I love my compact Canon, but I wasn't all that impressed with the Canon dSLR's that I looked at, either in terms of price or features.

The Sony is priced very competitively and offers some great features, such as auto-focus and image stabilization built into the camera itself, not relying on the lens. The A300 also has live preview on the LCD screen, which the D60 doesn't offer (live preview is what you get on a compact camera: you see what you are shooting as you take the picture). Finally, the A300 has more focus points than the Nikon. I spent a long time in several stores doing side-by-side comparisons of these two cameras. After many test shots, I finally chose the D60 for the following reasons: it felt more compact and less heavy than the Sony, I liked the way the lens felt when I was zooming, its LCD menu system was much clearer and more intuitive, and the Nikkor family of lenses is unbeatable. With a dSLR, it really gets down to which line you want to commit to for future lens purchases. I wasn't sure I wanted to go with Sony, when Nikon is well-known for quality optics.

I ordered the D60 from Amazon and I'm glad I did, since they have a 30-day price match policy. If the price of the camera decreases within 30 days of your purchase, all you have to do is email Amazon, and they'll credit you with the difference. The price of the D60 went down three times after my purchase (it's even lower now, but I've passed my 30 days), and Amazon was fast to process the refund for each decrease. Please note that it's your responsibility to check on the current price. Amazon will not notify you that the price has gone down, and why should they? So if you do buy this from Amazon, be sure to check every couple of days to see what the current price is.

As for the camera and the lens, I couldn't be happier. I love how it feels and how easy it is to use, at least for basic shots. Of course it won't fit in my pocket the way my point-and-shoot did, but it's not nearly as huge or heavy as I'd expected. The kit lens has VR (vibration reduction) which is a good thing to have, and it's well balanced with the compact body of this camera. In other words, the camera doesn't point down under the weight of the lens. Everyone who has tried out my new camera has commented on how compact and ergonomic it feels.

The camera works extremely well in low-light settings, with or without flash (you can defeat the flash if you want, and I find that in many situations, I get better results that way). The flash is a lot more powerful than what you get on a compact camera, and the coverage is more even.

So far, I've mainly used the "auto" mode, but I've taken some pictures in macro mode. It's graat to be able to take pictures in rapid succession, without having to wait the way you do with a point-and-shoot. Most important of all, the image quality is outstanding. The difference is noticeable and consistently better than what I was getting with my point-and-shoot.

The LCD menu is intuitive and visually appealing. That was one of the reasons I went with the Nikon in the first place, and I haven't been disappointed. By pressing the right button as you move the mode dial, you can see a description of what each mode does, which is very helpful. It's sort of like having a "help" system built into the camera, without having to carry around the instructions. Having said that, the instruction manual is really quite good. It won't teach you everything you need to know about digital SLRs, but it does a good job of explaining the camera's features. Nevertheless, I recommend buying a more extensive guide book which is specific to the Nikon D60 (there is one by David Busch which is currently available, and several more are scheduled to appear within the next couple of months).

So, I love this camera, especially at the very reasonable price point. However, there are some things that you should consider before making a final decision. First, the D60 will only provide auto-focus with Nikkor AF-S lenses. That means that most Nikon "prime" lenses will require manual focusing. That wasn't a big deal for me, but it is a limitation. Second, the D60's 3 focus points put it at the low end for this feature. Third, the D60 uses SD cards, while the Sony uses Compact Flash cards, as do many higher-end dSLRS. This isn't really a plus or minus, since SD cards are generally less expensive than Compact Flash, but some users say that Compact Flash cards may be more durable in the long run (they're larger and thicker). Finally, unlike the Sony, the D60 does not provide live preview. In other words, you don't see the image on the LCD until after you have taken it.

With all of that, I'm very pleased with my decision and I am having a lot of fun with my Nikon D60. If you're ready to move up from your point-and-shoot to a dSLR, you cannot go wrong with the D60.

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Samsung UN46EH5300 46-Inch 1080p 60Hz LED HDTV (Black)

Customer Ratings:

Ultimate Samsung TV Model Number Guide

This "review" is less of a review and more of a guide you can use to decipher what the model numbers mean. It took me a while to do this research so I hope it helps others on their quest for a new TV.

I'm going to use one of the currently best selling ones on amazon as an example see link below.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0074FGNJ6/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0074FGNJ6&linkCode=as2&tag=stupisms-20

U refers to the technology (U: LED LCD, L: CCFL LCD, P: Plasma) generally everything in 2013 and newer will be U because it's more power efficient.

N refers to North America

46 refers to the size. Size options vary by series and include 19,22,29,32,40,46,50,55,60,65,70,75,85. Yes that's an 85 at the end. If you buy one of these please invite me to your house for the Superbowl, I'll bring beer. Check it out below.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CMEN95U/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00CMEN95U&linkCode=as2&tag=stupisms-20

E refers to the year of manufacture (F:2013, E:2012, D:2011, C:2010, etc)

H or S (if present) refers to the type of backlighting (S: Sidelit, H: Backlit)

5300 refers to the series. A 2013 Samsung guide for features of all series is found here http://www.samsung.com/us/download/2013_LED_Comparison_Grid_v7.pdf

My example model didn't have any model suffix but if you see an FXZA it refers to the place it was sold. For US model TV's you will see this sometimes.

If it helped please pay it forward and vote helpful below so others can benefit too. Thanks!

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Seagate Barracuda 7200 1.5 TB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s 32MB Cache 3.5

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $199.99
Sale Price: $94.00
Today's Bonus: 53% Off

NEVER SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED:

I've watched the issue with these drives carefully for about 2 months. It looks like Seagate solved the problem and that a vocal few were ever really affected. By few I mean relative to the thousands sold. And I am not defending Seagate. This whole fiasco was unacceptable.

MY SYSTEM:

I picked up 8 of these drives. I'm running them in 4 separate DLink DNS-321 RAID boxes. I've copied about 4TB of data back and forth across them for days. My only firmware update needed was for the DLink so that it could properly handle the new 1.5TB drives.

In the end I believe all is well with both the drives and the DLink DNS-321. I will of course update this review immediately if I see any problems.

PERFORMANCE:

We are able to watch movies from this drive arrangement on 3 computers simultaneously across a 100mb network from the same drive while adding new files to the drive from a 4th computer.

This means I can be adding movies unattended to the system while watching an Epic Man movie on the plasma in the living room... while the kids are watching Monsters Inc in the bedroom... and the wife is off watching some chic flick in the Den. :)

The combination of DLink and these 1.5TB drives is fantastic and seems as stable as the WD 1TBs I was using previously.

PROPER DIAGNOSIS:

Don't confuse your drive DIEING after a week with the previous firmware problems of this particular drive. Blame the vendor that shipped the drive like it could bounce !

ON A SIDE NOTE:

I will say I am sick of Amazon, Tiger and other vendors shipping hard drives like they are indestructible ROCKS. Even if they arrive working, this inadequate packaging is certainly taking years off the life of our drives. One of my 8 arrived DEAD as a brick thanks to this nonsense. I am furious about this issue !

Will it take a class action to stop this behavior of guaranteeing future drive sales by damaging todays drives through deliberate mishandling of our purchases ?! Wake up AMAZON ! Wake up TIGER !

UPDATE: Dec 14 2009

One year later, I own 22 of these drives now. 12 are running daily in DNS-321 Raid boxes. The other 10 are used as back up drives in a drop in SATA adapter. No failures since 2 in the first few weeks, I believe due to poor packaging. About 6 of my drives came with the BAD firmware. I never had issues with that either. Call me blessed. I just think the DNS-321 and these drives work very well together.

UPDATE: Jan 8 2011

Another year passes and most of my 1.5TBs have all been pulled from DNS-321 RAID boxes and used as loose backup drives in a drop in SATA adapter. I've replaced them with the larger Seagate 2TB drives for larger capacity. NO FAILURES OF EITHER DRIVE 1.5TB or 2TB ! I have a couple Hitachi's and WD 2TBs. The Seagate drives are quieter and come off sleep in my RAID boxes faster than the other brands. All are used for video streaming over a network and do a fantastic job.

TIGER has been shipping drives MUCH BETTER. Amazon packagers have sent me drives packed poorly just 2 months ago. I requested replacements and Amazon handled the no charge exchange well. But they should NOT have been shipped that way.

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GoPro HD Surf Hero

Customer Ratings:

This is close to being a perfect example of a wearable/mountable POV camera. But unfortunately, close isn't quite good enough.

The pros:

Video is awesome, in all of the modes.

Stills are very good quality, the timelapse feature is fantastic.

It's waterproof.

The mounting options are (almost) limitless.

The cons:

It's awkward to set up. Menu is like something from 20 years ago.

Firmware issues have yet to be addressed by the manufacturer. This is inexcusable as the camera has been available for sale for nearly a year.

Audio is useless. They could have saved weight and cost by just not including a mic. The only instance where it even sort of works is when mounted right near a loudish sound you want to highlight, such as an engine.

There are too many instances where "Macgyvering" is required to get the desired result. The quick release mount rattles so you need to tape the base plate, the non waterproof back allows too much wind noise, so you need to tape over the openings, the shutter button rattles, so you need to tape over that. Moral of the story: BUY TAPE.

The support by the manufacturer is not quite adequate. I realize it's a small start up company, but for all the issues with the use of the camera and the handling/editing of the files, they really need to release some conclusive videos or articles to address these concerns.

People who might find this camera useful:

Auto racing enthusiasts

Mountain Bikers

Sailors

Hobbyist videographers looking for those unique shots

People who will likely be disappointed and frustrated by this camera:

Pretty much anyone who thinks they'll be using it as a camcorder.

People who aren't really tech savvy and/or have an older computer

People who don't like to tinker and engineer solutions to make it do what they want.

******UPDATE******* ******UPDATE******* ******UPDATE******* ******UPDATE******* ******UPDATE*******

As of September 7, 2010, Gopro released the new firm ware for the camera. It seems to have fixed most of the bugs/issues. It also provides the option for upside down mounting.

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Fujifilm Quick Snap Waterproof 35mm Single Use Camera

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $15.99
Sale Price: $9.01
Today's Bonus: 44% Off

On a recent trip to Tahiti I believe I have tried about every kind of one-time use underwater camera on the market (i.e., Kodak Max Sport; Kodak Max Wet, and Konica Waterproof Camera and the Fuji). All of the cameras worked fine snorkeling, although I found the Konica and the Kodak Max Wet to be more difficult to use. [The Konica was a little difficult to see through the view finder with a mask on, and the Kodak Max Wet, most annoyingly had the strap and the photo button on opposite sides of the camera! A real disadvantage to a right handed person. As a result you essentially had to use two hands to take a photo, one to hold the camera and the other to depress the button. Any of these cameras will work fine for snorkeling, however the best were the Fuji and Kodak Sport. Keep in mind that all underwater photos will look a bit blue, however, snorkeling in the lagoon in Tahiti the blue was not really noticeable.

Here's the part I really like, now I admit, contrary to manufacturer recommendations, I did take both the Fuji camera and the Kodak Max Wet camera with me Scuba Diving. According to manufacturer directions the Fuji camera's recommended depth is 17 feet [which is the deepest of any one-time use camera on the market]. On my dives we never went deeper than about 22 feet. The problem with diving with these cameras is the pressure you can take a photo just fine, but due to the pressure you will be unable to wind the film. However, I used the Fuji camera without any problems -I was always able to wind the film and the photos came out wonderfully -although they were blue. The Kodak Max Wet camera continually would freeze up, thus in order to take a photo you would have to snap the picture, go up several feet, wind the film then go back down -not very convenient and as a result I took very few photos. Although the photos I did take with this camera came out well, although they too were blue. The other benefit to the Fuji camera is that it is easier to use in the water, the button to take a photo is much easier to handle and there is a very large knob for winding the film, which is especially handy if you are wearing gloves.

The knob is a real drawback for both the Kodak Max Wet and the Konica cameras -I found those two cameras to be much more difficult to wind and may be near impossible if you are wearing dive gloves. Also with the Fuji and the Kodak Max Sport, the strap, the button and winder are all on the right side, which makes this camera very easy to use for a right-handed person.

In summary, if you go snorkeling I would recommend the Fuji camera or the Kodak Max Sport. ... And, if you do plan to go Scuba diving, give the Fuji a try.

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Cuisinart DCC-1200 Brew Central 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $165.00
Sale Price: $79.95
Today's Bonus: 52% Off

(2008 HOLIDAY TEAM) When my Braun FlavorSelect coffee maker unexpectedly stopped working, I had to scramble to find a new machine. I wanted another Braun, but unfortunately, they seem to have stopped making a 12 cup coffee maker. So I had to begin an intense search for a machine that had the features I wanted combined with good value. I finally found it with this Cuisinart model.

The advantages? For one, it makes excellent and HOT coffee. The carafe is solidly constructed and fits securely in square body so there's no chance of someone accidentally knocking it loose. Because the lid fits tightly, the pour is precisely narrow and smooth, with no side leaks even when the pot is full. The basket fits inside the housing instead of swinging free like so many models which prevents a misalignment between the water and the filter; the conical (Krups/Braun style) basket accepts both paper filters and gold-tone, although I learned the hard way that not all gold filters fit. The timer is very easy to program, as is the clock. The carafe warmer can be set at low, medium, or high for the temperature that's right for you. I found the "high" setting too hot since I drink my coffee black (I like my coffee hot but not scalding!), but those who add a lot of milk might appreciate it. The brewing is quick and efficient, with the process taking about a minute a cup, maybe less. The retro/stainless look complements most modern kitchen décors. There's a 1-4 cup setting to make sure such small amounts stay hot, and you can select how long the warmer remains on. The pot beeps five times when brewing is complete and just before the warming plate shuts off. Parts are top rack dishwasher safe. It comes with a water filter system designed to improve the taste of the brew.

But the Cuisinart does have disadvantages. The water reservoir is located on the right side, in the back, which makes it a little challenging for lefties like me to dump the final bit of water inside even though the carafe pours very accurately. Although I haven't yet missed the opening, I do struggle briefly with those last few drops unless I use my right hand. The housing is fairly tall, so if your counter space is only under the cabinets, you may not be able to lift the top in its entirety. (This is when the small rear reservoir becomes a major issue as you have to have room to completely lift the rather large top toward the back.) Clearance required: 7.5" wide by 8.5" deep of counter space with no overhead obstruction to pull out for filling OR 21.5" of overhead space to fully lift top. Without the top open, the coffee maker measures 7.5"w x 8.5"d x 14.25"h.

If you have the space for this coffee maker, you'll love it. I can't attest to how long it will last, but, as it comes with a three year warranty, I'm hoping for a good run.

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Aiptek 3D-HD High Definition 3D Camcorder (Black/White)

Customer Ratings:

Being a big 3-D fan, I was very excited when this product was announced and, because the price was so low, I pre-ordered it right away without having seen any reviews (because no reviews yet existed). I wasn't entirely sure if I was buying a novelty gadget or a truly useful device. To save myself from being disappointed, I expected the former and hoped for the latter. It turns out that the camera is much better than a novelty gadget, but don't expect to throw away your "normal", digital, point-and-shoot camera or your "normal" camcorder. You'll still need those when you want a perfect, printable photo and a lot of extended video. However, when what you want is a 3-D picture or short 3-D video, the Aiptek 3-D camera is a great, practical, and inexpensive option.

The first question I had was: "does it really work?" I'm happy to say that the answer is a big yes! The resolution of the parallax-barrier display is pretty low, but the 3-D effect is really great and the display serves the purpose very well. I expect the Aiptek 3-D photo frame, with its higher resolution, will be much better (it's still backordered as of this writing, so I don't have one yet). Please understand that when I say "low resolution", I'm speaking about the resolution of the built-in display, not the resolution of the actual images/video, which is much higher. 5 megapixels for images (2592 x 1944) and 720p for video (1280 x 720) doesn't sound like much nowadays, but you'll almost certainly NOT want to print the images you take with this camera anyway. Doing so would require you to convert to the Red/Blue (anaglyph) format. This works, but it's far less than ideal. Rather than that, I believe you should expect to only view these images/videos on the camera itself, the corresponding 3-D photo frame, or a new, 3-D TV. When you decide those are your primary viewing vehicles for the content you create with this device, the resolution becomes far more palatable. Indeed, the resolution of the images exceeds the resolution of the camera's display and even the resolution of the 3-D photo frame (800 x 600). For this reason, I think Aiptek was smart to use a relatively low resolution in order to keep the price so low.

The image and video quality is acceptable, but as I said earlier, if won't replace your existing camera for those times when you want very high quality. The image quality is about as good as the very best cameras being put into cell phones (which also don't compete with a dedicated, "regular" camera). I'll reiterate though: the quality is completely acceptable considering you're getting images in full 3-D. Other than the 3-D feature, there aren't a lot of frills: no image stabilization, no optical zoom, no flash, etc. It makes sense though because that's the only way you're going to get 3-D at this amazingly-low price-point. The camera has a tripod mount so, if you really need supplemental light, you can pick up one of those little LED lights that screw into tripod mounts for not very much money. As for video, it does record in 30 FPS, but if the action is moving quickly, it doesn't look like it. It looks like 10 or 15 FPS (it may still be recording 30 frames per second, but I'd guess 2 or 3 of those frames happen to be identical). I've noticed the reduced frame rate is a bit less pronounced if there is more ambient lighting. FYI: I'm using a Transcend, 16 GB, class 10 SD card. That's probably not as fast as a SanDisk class 10 card, but it should be enough to accommodate everything the camera can throw at it. It may sound like I'm speaking only negatively about this camera, but it's definitely not my intention to discourage the purchase of it. I just want you to be clear on what it *doesn't* do so that you have appropriate expectations. In reality, I'm thrilled with the quality of the camera and it exceeded my expectations.

I've quickly learned a trick to taking 3-D video and photos. It has to do with framing the images; I'll try to explain it here, but it's a little difficult to articulate. If what I'm about to say doesn't make sense, just ignore my ramblingsha. First, realize that everything in the image has a position along the Z-axis (the direction toward you and away from you [as opposed to left/right and up/down]). Next, realize that the frame around the screen itself has a position along the Z-axis. What this means is, some parts of the photo appear to come "out" of the screen and more distant objects appear recessed "into" the screen. The frame surrounding the display is somewhere in the middle. If the part of the image that extends out of the screen is cut off by the frame surrounding the display, it can hurt your eyes a little and look a bit confusing. This makes sense; how could an object (the frame) block the view of a subject if that object (the frame) is more distant than the subject? That's a logical paradox that my brain translates into confusion and/or eyes that have a hard time focusing. The trick is to not allow anything "in front" of the frame to be cut off by the frame. If you adhere to this, the 3-D effect looks much more natural. I'm sure I'll continue to learn effective ways to frame 3-D images as I become more experienced. In fact, that's part of the fun!

I'll sum everything up here: The camera is really good and the 3-D effect is outstanding. I believe it to be much more than a gimmick/novelty. To keep the price low, the camera sacrifices some other "standard" features you might be used to, such as optical zoom and a flash. For me, the tradeoff is well worth it: I get to take my own, good-quality, 3-D video/images for under 200 bucks. I'm not sure what I'm more impressed with: the technology or the price. I suppose it's the combination of the two that make this a strongly-recommended "buy" in my book.

[UPDATE: October 20, 2010]

As Reynato U. Barrera kindly pointed out in his review, there is indeed a (buried) firmware update and it does indeed fix the slow frame rate! This is great news. I don't believe Amazon will allow external URLs or I would provide a direct link, but if you go to the Aiptek EU site (use ".eu" instead of ".com") you can find the firmware update within the product page. I purchased the camera in the U.S., but because the camera will let you define the refresh rate (60Hz vs. 50Hz), I wasn't worried about using the firmware I downloaded from the EU site.

[/UPDATE]

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Sirui R4203 R Series Tripod Legs 3 Section 59.1in Height Carbon

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $746.95
Sale Price: $479.21
Today's Bonus: 36% Off

I have been looking for a robust tripod to use for landscape photography with my Nikon D800, but I was discouraged by the high price tags for some of the well known brands. I wanted carbon fiber legs that would handle the weight of longer telephoto lenses, and looked for over-sized diameter legs to help with stability and vibration reduction. I did not want a tripod with a center column as I felt this would detract from ruggedness and stability, but I needed enough height for my 6'3" frame.

The Sirui R4203 met those requirements and my initial impressions are universally positive. This tripod has a professional look and feel that inspire confidence, is well constructed and solid, and is priced under $500, about half the price of competing models of the same quality. I have paired this tripod with a RRS BH-55 head and L-bracket, and this combination feels very solid and stable. I have yet to take the equipment out for field testing, but first impressions are very positive.

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Nikon D60 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera Black Gold Special Edition

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I eyed this camera for a long time before buying. I always had SLRs before but lately only owned super zoom point and shoots. (5 M pix). I wanted a little better resolution and a lot more flexibility and ability to control what the camera does as well as quickness, and smarts. This one has it all. Now after having gotten used to it, I love everything about it. For example, it has several different "themes" for the display and you can set the "Vari-program" modes to look different than the "P, S, A and M" modes so you can see at a glance if you're in "point and shoot" or "think about it" modes. The "Quick-Set" menu button makes it super fast to set the most commonly changed settings. I love the way you can set ISO to be "Auto" in the "P, S, A and M" modes but set a minimum shutter speed and max ISO and it will ramp up the ISO within those limits. So it keeps ISO set at 100 until correct exposure would require a speed slower than your min shutter speed setting and only then starts ramping up the ISO. Really smart. And it has a real "Time" function like the old SLRs had. You have to buy the little remote but it's cheap, works fantastically and goes in a tiny case that goes on the camera strap so it's always with you. That replaces the old locking cable release you had to have to do time exposures. So you can take long exposures and from my initial tests in light polluted skys, it's going to take great starfield and milky way shots (with the fast lens I also bought. See separate review of the 50mm f/1.4G). And I love the exposure/focus lock button that can be set to do either or both (five different settings). And having good, precise manual focus at a touch of the focus ring is such a refreshing change from the point-and-shoots. The "delete" button is super fast to delete any shot. Just push it twice. I also love the rapid fire mode where it shows you how many shots are left in the buffer in viewfinder. So when you fire off four rapid shots of that little soccer player about to score, you don't have to wait for all four to store, you can see as it progresses that you can take one, two, three and finally four rapid shots again to plan ahead. And in that same situation, using the "sports" mode, it automatically sets focus to "continuous" which I normally don't use and stresses high shutter speeds. (Another place where it's nice to have a fast lens.)

Speaking of that, I've hardly used the 18-55 VR zoom that came with the kit. I've read that it's a very nice lens but have no experience yet since I LOVE the 50mm f/1.4G I got. I could go on and on. Photography is fun again!

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EIZO Foris FS2333-BK 23-Inch Screen LCD Monitor

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I had previously bought a u2410 (great monitor) and was really happy with it. It had amazing color depth and screen real estate. However, for gaming I was looking for something with a faster response time. Enter the EIZO foris. This monitor is perfect. The color is amazing, the response time is fast, and it comes with a remote! This is especially handy for switching between inputs. With the dell i had to navigate a touch screen menu, but with this Eizo its at the press of one button. The color rivals that of the dell and the anti glare coating is much more uniform. If you are looking for a monitor that is amazing for gaming and everything else at this size and resolution (1920x1080) this is your best bet. I went through several monitors and this monitor came out on top.

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Rokinon 8mm Ultra Wide F/3.5 Fisheye Lens with Auto Aperture

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $399.00
Sale Price: $279.00
Today's Bonus: 30% Off

Fisheye lenses are very fun they give a totally different perspective compared to just about any lens out there. The most common type seem to be the "circle" type, which product a big circle in the center of your image (with the fisheye image inside of that). On digital cameras with a crop-factor (like the Canon Rebel series, XXD series and even 7D), this can sometimes result in what looks like a circle with the top and bottom cut off.. not the most enjoyable image.

That's where this one comes in the Rokinon produced a rectangular fisheye image there is no "circle" as with other types of fisheye lenses, but you still get that great fisheye look (distortions and all).

You might see other similar looking (and priced) Fisheye lenses available out there.. Bower, Pro-Optic, Samyang, Rokinon, Vivitar, Falcon. These are ALL THE SAME LENS Samyang, the manufacturer, simply re-brands it and changes the colors a bit (For example, look at: Vivitar Fisheye lens 7 mm f/3.5 Canon EF Pro-Optic 8mm f/3.5 Manual Focus, Fish Eye Lens with Canon EOS Mount ). With that said, be sure to check out the others to find the most affordable. The Rokinon is often 50-75 dollars less than the Vivitar.

The lens is a Canon EF mount (I only mention this because it's not listed in the description, only that it's "For Canon" I wasn't sure if it was EF or FD mount before ordering). It WILL fit onto any EF Mount (meaning it will work on a 5D) but because it's SO WIDE, the hood will show up in images on a fullframe camera (it will not show up on images on a 1.6x crop camera like the Rebels, 7D or XXD line). The hood is not removable, but some people actually cut it off to use with full-frame cameras like the 5D.

The lens is rounded like a traditional fisheye, so you cannot use lens filter in front of this.

The angle is VERY WIDE probably 180 degrees.. I have the lenscap on a leash (capkeeper) and it shows up in images if I don't move it. Things right to the side of the lens will appear in the photo.. it's hard to hide from it!

The low price comes because the lens does NOT make electrical contact with the camera. It's a MANUAL LENS there is no autofocus, and the camera will not recognize it as a lens. You change the aperture by turning the manual aperture ring on the lens itself. You focus using the larger ring. Since the lens is so wide, if you set it to infinity (on the focus scale), then bring it back to just before that mark, most of your image will be in focus. It's actually tougher to get stuff out of focus than in focus (great for those like me who can't manual focus at all)

If you set your camera to AV mode (haven't tried the others) it will automatically determine exposure for you (I was worried about this, figuring a manual lens had to be set manually (including exposure)) You can, of course, still set it manually. And while it does meter, it's not always perfect so be sure to review your images once in a while to make sure everything is turning out. One of the problems is that with such a wide angle of view, there can often be very different lighting conditions. Taking a photo indoors, for example, will often result in a darkened room and very bright light sources wherever windows are. You almost need to "HDR" these to get usable images. Outdoors or in even lighting conditions, it works great.

The price is much less than other wide angle lenses (because those have name-brands behind them and features like autofocus and probably better optics). The only cheaper alternative are the poor screw-on fisheye filters that attach on top of an existing lens, but these will often produce near unusable photos. The photos from the Rokinon are surprisingly sharp.

The downside to it is that quality control on the distance-scale can be poor a number of people are reporting getting this lens (or the other rebranded variations) with a distance scale that is "off" meaning that the 2 foot mark might actually be "Infinity", but I think it is something you can learn to deal with after a few uses. It doesn't make the lens unusable by any means.

The other negative is that this lens is about 300 bucks for a manual-only lens made by Rokinon (or Samyang, etc..) that's almost the same as you'd pay for a Canon 50mm 1.4 lens (or similar). With that said though, I still really enjoy it and would re-buy it again if I had to make the choice again.

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Canon EOS-1Ds 11.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)

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After years of being a very faithful Sony user (I still like Sony and their products) I finally did the big leap, as in my mind the technology is finally there ... I bought a Canon EOS-1Ds 11.1 Megapixel camera body. Out of necessity I had to buy a set of EF lenses as well. I spent this years toy budget on just one purchase, but then THIS IS NOT TOY!

My last Sony was a F828 and before that a P10. The F828 is a great consumer product for the price, but it actually made me do the leap as good as it is, as it brought back my spirit for creating a REALLY good picture. I started to spend so much time to get to the right photo spot at the right time, that I did not want to have a lack of functionality then. I used to do a lot of photography 20 years ago on film, but returned as a point and shoot fotographer when digital came about. To say it with fellow countryman 'Arnie' "I'm back."

First I need to say that all Amazon partnershops performed and delivered flawlessly, my special mention goes to Adorama Camera. I would usually be worried to spend so much money on the web, but Amazon takes that away.

Now to the 'beast' itself the EOS-1Ds body. I will not go into all the functional details, as to my mind they are all correct as stated. The camera is great to hold and work with total confidence. But at first big disappointment. I was unable to concentrate on working with a professional camera. I was too used to point and shoot and expected the camera to do it all for me. Well, it does not. You need to know or learn photography for this one. It is now four weeks and 2500 pictures later and finally there is only one reason for a photo not to be perfect ME!

Biggest difference to other products is the film-size 24x36 CCD and the ability to set the ASA film sensitivity up to 1250 on the fly rather than having to change film. Not always is a tripod at hand or the photo subject would wait until you set it up and then hold still for a 2 second exposure. I could not ask the helicopter pilot to stop the vibration during a dawn flight over the Las Vegas Strip. Setting to ASA1250 shortened exposure time to s/50. The picture noise that you get as a consequence is dramatically reduced by the noise reduction feature and much less than the grain of a high-sensitivity film.

Cautions and recommendations: Learning how to clean the sensor from dust and dirt without damaging it is essential. This camera is VERY heavy you will need a strong tripod to hold it. Buy a second battery, even so the charging is quick and it usually lasts for two normal days of use. Using a CF card reader is easier than buying a Firwire attachment for your PC. Use 2GB high-speed Compactflash for convenience, it will give you 400 pictures in JPG. Feel free to send me questions, which I will answer as much as I can.

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