Bren's stats
- Review count230
- Helpfulness votes1,732
- First reviewDecember 27, 2016
- Last reviewJuly 12, 2025
- Featured reviews0
- Average rating4.8
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- Answer count11
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- First answerDecember 27, 2016
- Last answerNovember 4, 2021
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Unlock 100+ game audio presets with Arctis Nova 5 and the Companion App. Switch detailed EQ profiles for games like Fortnite, Apex Legends, Minecraft, and more without leaving the game. With 60-hour battery life, and 2.4GHz/Bluetooth wireless, play longer on PC, PS, Switch, and mobile with a USB-C wireless dongle.
Customer Rating
5
If Goldilocks made a headset, here it is!
on June 15, 2024
Posted by: Bren
This headset is in the proverbial goldilocks zone of headsets in all respects. It is neither over the top or too low in quality, price, and performance, it is just right. I am incredibly picky about my headsets; I need to start off by establishing that with you. I have reviewed no less than 7 or 8 headsets in the last three years and no headset has been able to dethrone and permanently replace my daily driver gaming headset, my Logitech 535. This for over two years has been the most comfortable headset I have ever worn with a lightweight, cool feel and great battery life. This week, my headset has been dethroned by this most excellent Artic Nova 5 Wireless headset! Let me happily share all the specifics with you next, but I will just tell you to go ahead and buy this headset and try it out if you are even remotely sure you want to give it a shot!
This headset is built for comfortable and endurance type gaming. That much is evidenced in every stich, hinge, fabric, and ounce of this very incredibly ergonomic headset. The ear cups are amazing at isolating sound, but the accomplish this not through being hot and sweaty pleather type material, but as foam and ventilated fabric ear cups! Very impressive design. I have a roasting hot head all the time, and this headset is one of the rare things that keeps my head cool in a 4-hour gaming session in my 77-degree F office. The suspension band styles of headsets are awesome and are a great movement in headsets. This is what was first notable about my beloved Logitech 535 wireless headset, and I am thrilled to see that design in other headsets like this one. You get the same support and weight distribution of the headset on your head without a giant foam cushion smashing in your head and giving you the infamous “streamer divot” on your dome, ha-ha! This headset is very customizable for all sorts of heads and seems to have a good balance of clamping strength, neither too much nor too little.
The audio quality of this headset, plus the customizability in the SteelSeries software is, bar-none, some of the best I have experienced in this price range! The audio profiles and EQ of this headset is incredible to navigate. There are so many profiles built into the software to explore, including game specific audio profiles like “footsteps Call of Duty” “Hunt Showdown” and more. There are also music specific EQ settings that are just awesome. I particularly love the bass boost for my dubstep and EDM and lo-fi music. Even just Flat EQ profile yields some amazing audio. SteelSeries has dialed in this headset perfectly.
The software of this headset on PC also has many more notable and excellent customizable features with intuitive controls and interactions. This headset has customizable sidetone that is incredibly clear in quality and can get LOUD. This would be amazing for hard of hearing gamers or streamers who are trying to appropriately monitor and modulate their voice during intense gaming sessions. This headset can get LOUD in general. There is a toggle turned on from the factory in the software on my headset that purposely limits the max volume of the headset. Turn this off and you could probably make your ears bleed, ha-ha! This is once again great for hard of hearing gamers who do not have their audiologists’ orders to limit external volume sources on their implants or hearing aid devices.
The microphone is one of the cleverest pieces of engineering I have seen in a while. Not only is it a clear and excellent quality mic, but it is able to be tucked completely away and hidden! No easy to lose and annoying removable mic or flip up model here. Just stow it back in the headset and pull it out when you need it. A further clever piece of design is that when you put the headset on mute, there is a red LED that lights up on the microphone so you can quickly glance down and see if you are muted or not! And guess what? This is ALSO customizable. You can adjust the brightness of this LED in the SteelSeries software. I am a variety gamer Twitch Streamer with a little over 350 followers at the time of this review (EagleEyeHunts) and I am going to now use this headset and Mic combo in my streams!
The versatility of this headset is amazing. It works via its USB-C 2.4ghz wireless hub, Bluetooth connection, or direct wired connection. I have used the Bluetooth and switching toggle between my phone and computer while gaming and it works perfectly. I think that people who are not yet in possession of a Bluetooth over the ear headset for listing to music should be really excited. This headset is a perfectly rational and even commendable pick for on-the-go music listening. I don’t even think it would be out of place in a gym workout session and certainly does not stick out in any circumstance around town during a commute. Higher-end SteelSeries wireless headsets offer simultaneous audio streaming from multiple devices, but personally I find that to be very distracting and prone to issues in audio balance, especially when I am streaming. This to me is the perfect balance between versatility and convenience. The 2.4ghz USB-C hub connection even works on my 2021 MacBook Pro 14! Very cool! My only non-SteelSeries dig on this headset is that I am getting confused why so many companies have switch to this obnoxious USB-C hub design that is short and wide. This one is over an inch and a half wide and covers multiple USB and other connection port when it is directly plugged in. SteelSeries does include a USB-C extension cable with a USB-A connection on the other side that works fine for extending the 2.4ghz hub away from the PC in question, but I still think it is obnoxious design wise.
Overall, this Arctis Nova 5 Wireless headset is a major win for SteelSeries in my book! I am truly so excited to have this headset in my possession and I am looking forward to many hundreds if not thousands of hours of gaming and streaming on it. Thanks for reading my review and I hope it has helped increase your enthusiasm for your purchase!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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+5points
5of 5voted this as helpful.
Enjoy everyday activities with this ASUS notebook PC. The Intel Celeron processor and 4GB of RAM let you run programs smoothly.
Customer Rating
5
A 5 star, highly affordable, USABLE laptop!!
on June 12, 2024
Posted by: Bren
This laptop is much to my shock and awe, a highly usable laptop for basic users! I have had many disappointments in my laptop reviewing the last year, particularly when it comes to machines with less than 8gb of RAM. Random Access Memory, or RAM, contributes massively to the ability of a laptop to feel snappy and to be able to multitask with multiple programs open at the same time. 4gb of RAM in a PC these days is like driving on the German Autobahn with a beat up 4 cylinder 90’s Honda Civic from the 1990’s, it just doesn’t really cut it and leaves you wanting for more speed and performance. This Asus basic laptop defies that notion entirely. Even with only 4gb of RAM, I am managing to simultaneously type documents (including this review) on this laptop while having multiple Microsoft Edge tabs open and a couple other programs in the background. In this review, I will give a detailed overview of the laptop and give some set up and usage tips as well for a smooth experience with this incredible bargain-priced machine!
Operating system:
This PC is loaded with Windows 11 S edition, which is essentially a lightweight, Windows-app only version of Windows 11 that will truly work just fine for the majority of basic users who aren’t wanting to fiddle around with a bunch of novel software installs. You get your basics here: a Microsoft Edge web browser, Microsoft Office products like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other apps available and/or preinstalled in the Microsoft Apps store. I think this is perfect for users who aren’t looking for all the bells and whistles and are happy to use Microsoft Edge for web browsing and checking email, as well as whatever programs are available natively through Windows. If you really want full featured Windows 11, you can get into the settings and switch out of Windows 11 S into normal Windows 11 Home, just have caution that this laptop model does only have 64GB of storage and you will quickly run out of room (and speed) if you try to load this up with too many programs. If you are or your child are in need of Google Chrome for Google University and apps, you will need to switch this laptop to Windows 11 Home to be able to install Google Chrome onto the laptop.
Set up:
This laptop, to the shock of no one who is familiar with budget PCs with Windows 11 loaded on it, takes forever to get through its initial booting processes, updates, and setups. Have no fear, you as the user have little to do except wait: this laptop took over an HOUR to fully get through all of its Windows 11 updates, initial setups, and to get you logged in to your desktop screen for the first use, only to have to let the machine do MORE updates via Windows Updater. Yawn. This is not on ASUS specifically; I have had this experience with multiple other budget Windows machines I have reviewed and that is just the way it is when you are dealing with lower end hardware that runs such a bloated and poorly optimized OS like a factory Windows 11 install. Just get your laptop plugged in, boot it up, and put your favorite show in the background on your TV for a couple episodes while you wait on this machine to go through its steps for set up. Additionally, when it seems to be done updating, make sure to go into settings and click on the Windows update icon in the top right corner of that screen to make sure you check and install for any more updates. This is unfortunately what you must deal with on most any Windows 11 OS laptop these days.
Regular use:
Overall, I think this laptop is unequivocally perfect for basic users. What do I mean when I keep saying, basic users? What I mean is, people who are only opening this laptop up to do a few basic tasks at a time, like browse the web, check their emails, type up a Word document, work on an Excel spreadsheet, maybe play some Solitaire built into the computer, haha! The important qualifier in this use case, is that you, the user, MUST have excellent “computer hygiene”. What I mean by this is that you must close programs you are not using in order to avoid slow downs and program stutters. This is due to the fact of what I talked about earlier, this laptop has very little RAM (Random Access Memory) and cannot keep multiple programs open and running smoothly at a time because of it. So, with whatever you are doing on this laptop, expect to have to keep browser tab counts down and to have to close programs you aren’t using. You will be less frustrated and enjoy a much smoother experience on this machine!
Build Quality:
The build quality of this laptop utterly belies what the price tag for it says. It is actually an admirably well-built machine. It is, for one, very lightweight and thin. It measures on my scale a few hairs under 3 pounds in weight and is 3/4 of an inch thick at its thickest point. It is a little thicker and wider than a current generation Apple MacBook Pro 14 for comparison, but half a pound lighter! I think aged users who are tired of carrying around bulky, hot machines are going to be happy with this laptop. It is gentle on the body to use and gentle on the budget too. More on the build quality is a metal keyboard deck and lid with an otherwise plastic housing construction. Truly not bad!
Keyboard:
This excellent keyboard with a surprising amount of logic used in its layout, sports a solid and comfortable keyboard deck and keycaps that offer a great typing experience. The keyboard is not backlit which is a bit of a bummer, but at this price I don’t think anyone can complain. I love typing on this keyboard, it feels like a simple scissor switch membrane style keyboard which is perfect for most users.
Touchpad/Numpad:
The touchpad with the number pad built into it is so clever! If you are a Microsoft Excel number cruncher like I am with our household budget, you are going to appreciate this handy feature for your longer equations or calculations. There is a simple on/off touch sensitive button in the top right of the track pad that has a white LED indicator that turns on when the numpad is active. Then you are able to use the numpad no problem just like a touchscreen phone calculator. Even better though, is the fact that you can still use the trackpad to scroll around and mechanically click! Albeit this takes a bit of practice to get right and you still might run into a couple registration issues on your spreadsheet where you accidentally get a numpad input. It is easy enough to switch the numpad on and off with the touch sensitive area.
Display:
The display here is excellent for a budget laptop! It is a full HD resolution 1920X1080p display running at 60hz. Translation: for a budget laptop, you are not getting a crappy looking display. It displays YouTube videos and picture content nicely and gets nice and bright for working in brighter environments like out on a coffee shop patio. The lay flat display may be nice for some, but I personally have never seen the utility in a laptop screen that lays totally flat, so I am not losing my mind over this feature. Altogether, an excellent full HD display for this budget laptop!
Battery:
The battery life on this laptop is, as expected with lower-end and lower power internals, pretty decent! My projections are showing about 7 hours of sustained multitasking use at 40% brightness on the “best power efficiency mode” in the Windows power settings. I think this is reasonable and far exceeds the laptops of even half a decade ago in this price range. It charges via a proprietary charger barrel port and does NOT charge via the USB-C port included on the laptop. I understand that Asus would want to keep costs down on such a budget laptop, but it is still nice to have power delivery through a USB-C port available for versatility when on the go.
Opening up the laptop:
I got peppy and decided to open up this laptop to see what is inside the guts of it. Take a look at the pictures! What I found is a highly organized and not overstuffed internal configuration, complete with soldered on RAM (bummer), a cute lil’ 64GB eMMC storage module, a user replaceable Wifi card, and an extremely sturdy and nicely thermal pasted CPU heat sink! I was impressed by this. I really think there could have been room in here for user replaceable RAM, so that is a bummer that means you are stuck with the amount of RAM that you buy this with. However, I found something quite interesting in the motherboard… what appears to be an M.2 slot complete with a full-sized mounting screw position for a M.2 SSD! So, if you or your kid are tech savvy, they might enjoy the ease of opening this laptop up and installing an M.2 SSD to transfer the OS onto in order to gain more storage and faster boot speeds of varying programs. This laptop was really easy to get into with Philips head screws and the bottom popped off with just a little jostling from a gift card in a couple spots near the hinges. If only this laptop had replaceable RAM, I would be losing my mind! But it is still excellent and speaks to being future proof for easy battery replacements too.
Stats:
Speedometer 2.1 score: 89.3
CrystalDiskMark: Internal eMMC 64gb Drive: Read MB/s: 299.32 Write MB/s: 195.35 (These are reasonable speeds for eMMC memory; better by far than the old 5000rpm spinning disk hard drives that were common for OS installs a decade ago.
Test of USB-C 3.2 port (Test Drive: Crucial X9 2TB SSD with 1gb read/write speed capabilities): 449.29 read/ 436.48 write.
Test of USB-C 3.2 port (Test Drive: Crucial X9 2TB SSD with 1gb read/write speed capabilities): 449.29 read/ 436.48 write.
To summarize, I am amazed to find myself at the end of this review to actually be recommending a budget laptop in 2024 as usable for basic users with a 5 STAR RATING! This laptop is amazing for what it offers for basic users. When you try this laptop, make sure you give it a good hour to hour and a half or so to fully get all of its first-time boot, updates, and system tweaks completed before you expect to do any intensive use with it. Thanks for reading and I hope this review has helped you!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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+16points
16of 16voted this as helpful.
The Turtle Beach® Stealth™ 500 wireless amplified gaming headset for PS5™ & PS4™, Windows PCs, & mobile devices redefines what an “entry-level” wireless headset is capable of. Equipped with low-latency, 2.4GHz wireless plus Bluetooth® 5.2 connectivity, the Stealth™ 500 is designed for versatile gaming on console & mobile. Easily toggle back-and-forth between 2.4GHz wireless & Bluetooth® connections using the QuickSwitch button located conveniently on the headset. An ultra-lightweight design with a floating headband eliminates any pressure points for a perfect fit and leatherette-wrapped memory foam ear cushions provide non-stop comfort and enhanced noise isolation. A staggering battery life of up to 40 hours is best in its class, plus it features quick charge so you can get back in the game right away. Precision-tuned 40mm drivers are amplified to deliver renowned Turtle Beach® audio quality, optimized for spatial audio right out of the box. And to dial in your audio quality even further use the Swarm™ II desktop software for PC, or mobile app for iOS & Android devices to adjust EQ settings, activate Superhuman Hearing®, toggle EQ presets and more. Lead your team to victory with ultra-clear voice accuracy thanks to a flip-to-mute omni-directional microphone. Plus, you can activate and adjust variable mic monitoring using the Swarm™ II app so you can hear the level of your own voice to avoid shouting.
Customer Rating
5
Long battery life in a reasonably priced headset!
on May 31, 2024
Posted by: Bren
While this headset is by no means the best in class in every facet, I can see the attraction of this headset. It fuses many of the more desired features of a modern gaming headset, such as a nice comfortable suspension band style headband with excellent battery life that is sure to impress anyone. Better than average audio quality is also paired with the versatility to run this headset across multiple systems, including on PlayStation consoles, the Nintendo Switch, and on, what is perhaps the best feature of this bargain of a headset, on Bluetooth connected devices like android and Apple iOS smart phones! There is also another SKU of this Stealth 500 that is designated for Xbox’s and such. The majority of my headset usage time before this review occurred on my Windows 11 PC, iPhone SE 3, and plug-and-play use with my PlayStation 4 Pro Console.
My first impression of this headset out of the box is that the build quality is respectable at this price point. This headset is not an aesthetic beauty of an audio product, but it is also not a chunky piece of overseas plastic garbage that is going to leave you, or your intended recipient of this headset embarrassed to wear it. The lines and contours are clean, and the ear cups are not bulky. They are made of quite a comfortable pleather covered foam material that snugs securely to my medium-average adult male head. If you run with hotter ears and head like me, you may find yourself sweating it out in these a tad during a long gaming session. The earcups also perfectly accommodate my Gamer Advantage bluelight glasses I like to wear during gaming, so you are in luck as a glasses-wearer if you choose this headset!
As I mentioned earlier in the review, this headset actually has above-average audio quality! I am stinking impressed to be honest. The stock EQ setting this comes set to is “Turtle Beach Signature Sound”, and I have zero desire to change the audio signature! It is perfect for music and for video games. Doom Eternal sounds gnarly coming out of these earcups and the music I play from EDM to country is balanced and easy to listen to!
The Turtle Beach Swarm II software for this device is actually quite feature-packed and impressive. I am quite thrilled with the amount of control and customization that is available on this less than $80 dollar headset. For one, you actually get sidetone monitoring and noise gate control right on the front page of the controls of this headset of the software. This is amazing, as it allows you to hear yourself speak which is great for voice modulation and volume control during games and Discord calls, and the noise gate adjustments can help you cut out those pesky keyboard taps, mouse clicks, and other distracting background noises so your team mates don’t hate you, haha! The EQ controls built into the software are also quite impressive. As I mentioned above, the “Turtle Beach Signature Sound” EQ profile is perfect for my needs and expectations as a borderline audiophilic gamer.
The only place I am going to have to give this headset a slight knock that is not going to affect the star rating is the microphone voice quality. It is reasonable and according to my friends who have heard my voice via Discord doesn’t sound bad at all! For anyone in the tech world who is desiring a little more of an upscale voice quality experience, keep looking for something else. I am a Twitch Streamer (EagleEyeHunts) and I would not want to use this mic to communicate with my viewers and other streamers. But for regular Joes gaming and all around having a blast with non-streaming activities, I think this headset is perfect! I should also mention the microphone is nicely tucked away when folded back into the headset and has a very clever little adjustment setting for getting the mic close to your mouth once the device is unfolded.
Altogether, this headset is without a doubt and easy to suggest option in the “above bargain-priced” price category. Other higher-end headsets from Turtle Beach and other companies go on sale at times that could drive this headset out of the mind as a good deal, but at its retail price I would say I am quite impressed. If voice communication and microphone quality are not your number one priority, than go ahead and pick up this headset today and let me know what you think of it! I am always happy to come back to my reviews and read other users’ thoughts. Cheers and I hope you enjoy your purchase!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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+2points
2of 2voted this as helpful.
Meet the Razer Seiren V3 Mini—an ultra-compact USB microphone that now packs even more. Featuring a new tap-to-mute function and advanced audio customization, enjoy studio-quality voice capture with the perfect pint-sized companion for gaming, streaming, and chatting.
Customer Rating
4
Nicely built mic; poor software and adjustability.
on May 10, 2024
Posted by: Bren
This new mic entry from Razer is well on its way to joining the recent movement that has been happening in streamer and gamer-oriented audio hardware: ensuring audio simplicity and performance without the need for an audio engineering degree. More and more gamers are looking for simple plug and play setups that don’t break the bank but come with the reliability and notoriety of brands they trust, such as Razer. This Siren v3 Mini is well on its way to becoming a handy choice, it just needs more adjustment capability than is currently offered in the Razer Synapse 3 software. Allow me to elaborate.
To start with praise, the build quality of this mini mic is superb. The base is surprisingly hefty and perfectly balanced. Paired with the proprietary Razer mic stalk that attaches to the base (not 1/4-20 UNC threads for camera/tripod mounts; boo-hiss), this is sturdy set up. There is even an articulating ball joint on the base that the mic attaches too for snuggly rotating that mic into different positions or angles based on your preference. The touch interface for the mic mute on and off works perfectly without any hesitations or glitches that I could perceive. The Razer Synapse software also allows you to add different double tap or triple tap functions, like mic volume up and down, to this touch sensitive region. There is a simple LED light that is green for a live mic and red for a muted mic. Perfectly simple and intuitive.
What is unfortunate is that the simplicity of this mic and its software controls is also the weakness. This condenser mic needs more adjustability with factory software or hardware functions to be feasible for use for most gamers and streamers. This mic, even at 30% input volume, picks up EVERYTHING. The smallest key tap, the scroll of your mouse wheel, the feathering of a bird’s wing as it glides by outside of your window; my gosh, this mic captures it all. Ergo, although the audio quality is nice from my OBS recordings with this mic, there is simply too much extraneous noise capture happening in this plug and play format for me to recommend it to gamers. The product listing states that there is a “Supercardioid pickup pattern for greater voice isolation---allowing the mic to focus on your voice while surprising room noise”. Nope. That was not my experience at all.
Where this mic surprisingly excelled and why I will be keeping it, is for instrument recording! I played some guitar songs on this mic and was astounded to find that it was actually not bad sounding at all! I am one of those weirdos that enjoys that natural sounds an instrument makes when handled to show up in my recordings: the clicks, thumps, squeals, and taps of interacting with the fretboard and strings of a guitar for example. This mic certainly excels at that!
This review is resulting in a 4-star rating in summation. I know that there are programs and potential software updates that are going to allow this simple, elegant little mic to shine, it just isn’t here out of the box for the average consumer. Thanks for reading and I hope you found this review helpful!
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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+2points
2of 2voted this as helpful.
In emergencies big or small, press the button on the Lively Mobile2 medical alert to get help 24/7. The Lively Mobile2 gives you one-button access to Lively services and the Lively caring team. The enhanced GPS technology tracks user location and the optional Fall Detection can detect falls and automatically call Lively Urgent Response in the event of a fall, keeping you safe at home or on the go.
Customer Rating
5
Peace of mind for my WWII Vet Grandfather
on April 10, 2024
Posted by: Bren
As the title of the review says, this device has given our whole family extreme peace of mind concerning my 97-years-old grandpa. He is an incredible example of his generations resilience; still living independently and managing most of his 0.8 acre properties minor tasks on his own. Alas, as the years have marched on, he now walks with a cane and has demonstrated occasional balancing issues. Neighbors and family check up on my grandpa almost every day of the week, but there has always been that nagging sense of worry that my grandpa is going to lose his balance when no one is around and have a nasty fall. Enter the Lively Mobile 2. Not only is the utility and features of this device some of the best I have ever seen, but the device itself is clearly intended for use by older or differently abled individuals who may struggle with fine motor skills or use of modern technology.
Everything about this Lively Mobile 2 is simple for day-to-day use. The functions of the device, including the fall detection lanyard (the best choice of wear for accurate fall detection) are designed for easy manipulation and use. The clasp of the lanyard is a clever magnetic male and female paring attached to a thick, comfortable lanyard cord that makes wear comfortable and easy. The magnet is perfectly tuned on the lanyard: it is strong enough to stay attached to the user even during bumpy and harsh moments like moving in or out of a car or wheelchair seat, but also with two handed gross motor manipulation to pull apart for removal during charging on the dock. The lanyard also has some elasticity to it so the device on the lanyard can simply be pulled over the head of the user rather than unclasping the lanyard. My grandfather and I have average, adult male circumference heads and we were able to pull the lanyard over our heads with eased. For those inclined or wishing to be more low profile, there is an included belt loop clip attachment. Just note, if fall detection is a goal of use with this device, the lanyard loop worn around the neck is the most reliable at detect falls.
The Lively mobile 2 also encourages use in the differently abled who may have poor eyesight or be hard of hearing. The included charging station has a tactile and raised “device health check” button that allows you to check the full status of the device, with an audible and clear female voice announcing, “No errors detected, your device is ready to use and fall detection is enabled.” If all is well and you have the fall detection feature in your plan. What a huge relief for those who may not be confident with various flashing light status indicators and such! The charging base is USB-C connector powered and an AC adapter with USB-C connector is included, meaning this is fully ready for charging and resulting use!
The device itself feels like excellent quality. It has a sturdy and high-quality exterior without weight too much as to feel like an aggravating weight on my grandpa’s neck. There is a tactile power button on the back of the device that powers the device off when pressed for 5 seconds or so. While powering off, an audible chime plays and the female voice says, “Your device is powering off”, allowing you to have that feedback if there are vision impairment issues or if this occurs accidently. I think an accidental shut down of the device is unlikely given the position and size of the power button, but it is good to know that there is a warning if this happens. When the device is powered on, there are flashing green indicators above a clear battery simple and connection symbol to give visual feedback that the device is indeed adequately charged and connected for use. The battery light while flash amber when the device needs charged and will flash red when it is critically low. The device’s voice announcer will also announce in a loud and clear voice, “Battery is low, please charge device”, when the battery is getting low.
The device is IPX7 rated which means it is for all intents and purposes, water-proof! The way I explained it to my grandfather is that he can shower, get caught in the rain, or have the device above the waterline in the bathtub, but it is best practice not to soak or submerge the device for too long. I also explained to him that he needs to gently shake the lively device to get water out of the microphone and speaker grills to help with audio transmission and to wipe the device completely dry before charging it on the base. Showers, bathrooms, and bath tubs are statistically some of the highest risk locations in the home for a fall, so it is a relief to know that this device is good to go for my grandpa during this critical use case.
Now, for the Urgent Response Button. This is the devoted, tactile button on the front of the device that many of us associate with this type of device. The user has a question, concern, or emergency in need of urgent response and presses this button. Via the speaker and mike array on the front of the device, a Lively agent is able to talk to you or your loved one to figure out the best plan up to and including activating your local emergency services response. Something important: if you or your loved one decide they want to test the urgent response to ensure it is working, make sure that you wait for an agent to answer and then tell the agent that you were just testing the device and are not in need of assistance. They are trained to activate EMS if you just hang up the device, so it is crucial.
Who am I to have written this review? I am a healthcare worker, TIN program professional reviewer, and a grandson who loves his greatest-generation grandpa deeply. I hope this review has helped you and inspires the same confidence in you that it has for me.
I would recommend this to a friend!
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+2points
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Improving on its legendary predecessor in every way, COROS Pace 3 packs an even more powerful punch. Track your training and recovery with a technologically advanced watch that's lightweight and comfortable, with outstanding data accuracy, and backed by the industry-leading COROS training software system. COROS Pace 3 paves the way to discover your potential.
Customer Rating
5
An amazing choice for fitness and exercise nuts!
on March 26, 2024
Posted by: Bren
This watch is an excellent choice for fitness and exercise enthusiasts who want to enjoy the convenience and precision of tracking their activities and goals on a smart watch without the bloat and excesses in price, features, and distractions associated with smart watches of the “typical” sort from bigger makers like Apple etc.
From the moment I pulled this watch out of the box and started to handle it, I was in love. The included standard watch band feels amazing and is so breathable. I could tell immediately that I was going to have no need to get a different band for my sweaty wrists as this is exactly what I look for in a watch band. Furthermore, something I like about this band is that there is no exposed metal to snag or scratch surfaces, like a laptop deck, when you have this watch on. The watch itself has a handsome and not overly obnoxious sporty appeal.
The watch is incredibly easy to set up. I downloaded the COROS app and paired the watch to the phone following all the instructions. The watch came with about 75% battery life, so I had no concern about charging it before getting started. As I have gotten more familiar with the watch and its features, I have no problem recommending it to even less tech savvy potential owners like my dad who just doesn’t want to fool around with too many bells and whistles. To bridge this gap, every major feature is accessible via the crown dial and side button, or by utilizing the touch screen of the device! This watch was very thoughtfully made.
While the screen of the Pace 3 is not the prettiest, the is the point: what it sacrifices in eye popping colors and beauty, your trade off is that you gain excellent battery life and have a device that is not going to scorch your retinas every time you bring it up to your eyes to check your workout progress. The battery is rated for 15 days of daily use and I am seeing every indication in my experiences that this is true!
One of the features I really like on the watch is that it has an easy to use lock out feature that you can toggle on and off. This means if you are doing a really intense workout, you are not going to have to worry about accidentally pausing your workout or starting a lap when you don’t want to.
I used this throughout a few active days of my week. I cycled, ran, went for walks, and went about my everyday activities. This watch tracked all my metrics with astounding accuracy, including the built in GPS that tracked my outdoor walks and bike rides. I am thrilled with this watch I would even feel comfortable leaving my smartphone at home while I go on a “unplugged” bike ride or run.
I used this throughout a few active days of my week. I cycled, ran, went for walks, and went about my everyday activities. This watch tracked all my metrics with astounding accuracy, including the built in GPS that tracked my outdoor walks and bike rides. I am thrilled with this watch I would even feel comfortable leaving my smartphone at home while I go on a “unplugged” bike ride or run.
Speaking of smartphones, while this watch focuses on exercise and fitness, it does not totally toss out smart convenience features. You do have the option to have call alerts, text read outs, and other device alerts sent to the watch. I found this annoying more than anything since you can’t act upon the notifications like you can with an Apple Watch, so your decision whether to use this notification feature may vary.
Altogether, I can heartily recommend this watch to anyone who finds the above-described features of interest as an exercise watch. Between the battery life, convenience of use, and rugged yet elegant build quality, this watch is here to suit a wide variety of users with great alacrity!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Jabra Elite 5 true wireless earbuds are made to help you put the world on pause, and then reconnect in a second. Block out ambient noise with powerful Hybrid Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), or stay in touch from wherever your day takes you with 6-microphone call technology. With our 6mm speakers, and range of audio enhancing codecs, you’ll be lost in goosebump-inducing, heart-racing, soaring sound. The beat goes on with up to 7 hours of battery in the buds and up to a total of 28 hours with the Qi-certified wireless charging case. The fast charge feature will give you an hour of power in just 10 minutes. Extend your battery life even further with mono mode by using one bud while the other one charges.
Customer Rating
5
A decent choice among mid-range wireless earbuds!
on March 24, 2024
Posted by: Bren
TLDR: To start off this review, I just want to begin with the honest qualifier that in a vacuum where these earbuds are the only available wireless earbuds available, the Jabra Elite 5 earbuds are excellent. However, in an abundant market of excellent earbuds made by a wide variety of manufacturers, these Jabra Elite 5 earbuds are absolutely average wireless earbuds in almost every metric that comes to mind. The price: average. The build quality: average. Noise canceling: average. Audio quality: Average. Altogether, just some very average and generally unoffensive, yet uninspired earbuds in the market in 2024.
Unboxing and set up was not the best experience I have had with a set of earbuds in any recent reviews. The earbuds were packed up nicely in sustainable, earth friendly packing materials. Setting up the headphones was actually rather a bother. When I first pulled the earbuds out of their case, I was annoyed to find a feature some manufactures implement of placing a plastic protection film over the earbuds that prevents them from making contact with the charging contacts in the case. As such, I had to peel these off and charge the earbuds before I even got to get my review started. Admittedly, the charging was quick, but then I came to my next nuisance of having annoyances with getting it paired to my iPhone. I have reviewed over half a dozen types of higher end wireless earbuds in the last year or two. In that time, I have found most earbuds to be highly intuitive to connect to my phone. These ones were not. After a few stubborn attempts, I finally capitulated and followed the instructions to download the Jabra Sound+ app.
Once I had the app installed and running, I was able to follow the instructions and get the earbuds connected to my phone. The app is actually decent. It is very straightforward to navigate and has some good offerings in the way of customizing these earbuds to suit your preferences, including the audio balance in the form of the “Music Presets” widget. I am generally a neutral or balanced audio guy, but I found that these earbuds sounded just a little bland on a neutral balance. The “Energize” music preset is the selection you want if you want to get a bit more out of these earbuds in the way of music audio quality. As soon as I did that, I began to enjoy an audio experience in all genres of music from rock to dubstep to country music that was far more dynamic and silken honey to the ears. The Sound of Silence sang by Disturbed’s David Draiman is represented beautifully by these earbuds. Breathe Again by Pop Evil kicks your teeth in at the drop at the 54 second mark in the song (which is why I love using that song for audio testing). Without Me by Eminem is awesome in these earbuds with the Energize music preset. Altogether, a great audio experience once adjustments in EQ were made via the presets!
A cool feature that these Jabra Elite 5 earbuds boast via the Sound+ app is the ability to customize the strength of the Active Noise Canceling feature. This is a nice alternative to some earbuds that are all or nothing with their noise canceling. This means you could turn up the strength to max in a situation like a plane or bus commute or turn it down in a relatively quieter but chatty café. The maximum strength noise canceling is about equal in most respects to my old first gen Airpods Pro earbuds which is actually a major compliment as those were some of the best ANC earbuds in the business when they came out. The newest generation Airpods Pro are far better at noise canceling, however. The passthrough or “HearThrough” setting could probably use a firmware update. The microphone array on the earbuds just isn’t bringing enough audio through even on full strength and your own voice is muffled and your ears still sound plugged. Definitely needs an adjustment which I am certain can be accomplished over the air via a firmware update.
Now, for some general housekeeping and observations to wrap up the review. The case is no larger than an Apple Airpods Pro case (fitted in a dbrand protective case). That is good as I already think that size case approaches the “too large for tight jeans” realm and therefore that is win for Jabra. The case itself is fine, bringing the total hours of use on the earbuds with charges to 28 hours and offering wireless and USB-C charging capability; perfectly suited to 2024 standards. The only flaws I want to point out is that the hinge of the lid is a little flexy and the lid itself is very thin when compared to other cases like the Airpods Pro case. This may present a concern for longevity if you are abusive to your earbuds case.
The build quality of everything else including the earbuds themselves feels amazing. I love the tactile and perfectly tuned click of the Jabra Elite 5 buttons on each earbud. I can press them with relative ease and force without feeling like I am having to shove the earbud into my ear canal.
Altogether, I feel that Jabra has added yet another decent, worthy of purchase earbud entry into their huge and convoluted inventory of options over the years. It is cool to see that this Danish company is keeping up with the advancement of wireless earbud technology and they are doing their part to keep up with the market movements with their lineup of products. Definitely consider these earbuds if you are not wanting to direct your dollars towards one of the bigger market shareholders and DEFINITELY consider these if they go on sale, they would be an amazing bargain at any price lower than listed retail!
Thanks for reading and I hope this review has helped!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Introducing the SanDisk Extreme M.2 NVMe SSD with PCIe Gen 4.0, engineered to keep up with your demanding creative workflows. Enjoy stellar performance with extreme read speeds up to 5,150MB/s so your PC can stay ahead of your flow as you work, edit, and play faster than ever before. With capacities up to 2TB, your drive can handle data-intensive workloads with ease after you finish the quick, one-screw installation. You can even stay up-to-date on your SSD’s health with the Western Digital Dashboard.
Customer Rating
5
Incredible drive, perfect price, and upgrade!
on February 19, 2024
Posted by: Bren
This drive is EXACTLY what I needed to upgrade the performance of my stock pre-built gaming PC. I have a 1-year-old Asus pre-built gaming PC that had the OS installed on a pretty tired and small 512GB SSD that only maxed out write speeds at 1800 MB/s. This was generally adequate when I was only gaming. But after I started streaming a few months ago (EagleEyeHunts on Twitch), I realized I needed more storage and faster storage to meet the demands of my streaming, gaming, video recording, and all of the programs and files I was constantly opening, downloading, and moving around.
Enter this new SanDisk Extreme M.2 1TB internal SSD. With its PCIe Gen 4x4 capabilities, I am observing fantastic results for a drive at this price! I got read speeds topping 5281 MB/s and write speeds of 4354 MB/s! This is faster read by 1000MB/s of my old micron 512GB SSD and almost 2.5 times faster write speeds! This exceeds the advertised figures for this drive from Sandisk, and it is EXACTLY what I needed to spruce up my system to get it to current 2024 speed standards!
The drive, packaging, etc., are everything you would expect of an M.2 internal SSD in this form factor. One thing I like about the drive itself is that there is not an excessively bulky or annoying heat sink on it that would make it a chore to get it slotted into some laptops or desktops. It can easily be installed in any compatible M.2 slot and is backwards compatible with previous PCIe generation standards.
For those who will be cloning a smaller or older HDD or SSD and want to migrate their Windows OS system to this new SSD from Sandisk, I just want to let you know I used diskgenius free version to do it. It is a website and was indeed absolutely free and easy to migrate my old 512GB OS drive and move it onto this 1TB version! There are YouTube tutorials that can show you how to do it with this program!
Altogether, I 1000% percent recommend this drive. Whether you are upgrading your desktop or laptop, building a new one from scratch, or looking for a good drive for an external SSD closure, this is a great pick. Thanks for reading, and I hope you liked the review!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Stand out from the crowd with superior skill and distinctive design. The CORSAIR K65 PLUS WIRELESS is a 75% gaming keyboard that maxes out on performance and personality. Step up your switch game with pre-lubricated CORSAIR MLX Red linear switches that make each keystroke silky smooth and responsive. Integrated sound dampening tempers annoying clacks and pings, so you can enjoy subtle, pleasant acoustics as you play and type. Easily connect to PC, Mac, and other devices via ultra-fast 2.4GHz wireless or Bluetooth, and power through your playing sessions for longer than ever – up to 266 hours on a single charge. On the K65 PLUS WIRELESS, skill meets style.
Customer Rating
5
Next gen quiet, high performance 75% keyboard
on February 11, 2024
Posted by: Bren
Unboxing: The design on the box looks excellent, it is flashy and tells you all the features right on the box. The box is super sturdy and strong, so your keyboard can be shipped safely without any damage. Inside the box, you will get a Keycap puller, which is a handy and thoughtful accessory to include. The keycaps are very tightly placed into the keyboard so they would be difficult to remove without the keycap puller. It comes with a braided USB C cable long enough to keep gaming while plugged in and charging if your computer is a decent distance away. The keyboard has wired, 2.4ghz wireless connectivity with the included USB-A receiver, and Bluetooth. Corsair thoughtfully included the ability to be able to switch the keyboard from Windows to Apple Macintosh configuration so that your buttons like alt versus command are appropriate to the system you use the keyboard with. As both a Windows and Mac user, I LOVE this feature since I am heavily reliant on the command+ features with Apple productivity.
Setting up the keyboard was simple and straightforward. Just flip the switch on the keyboard to wireless mode, connect to the USB-A receiver that comes included with the keyboard, and you’re ready to go for low latency gaming. Plug and play. You can also use Bluetooth: Flip the switch to Bluetooth mode, and it automatically goes into pairing mode. Just open the settings on your desired device you are connecting to and the keyboard shows up, ready to connect. You can connect up to 3 devices and quickly switch on the right side of the keyboard!
The keyboard itself feels excellent to type and game with. The switches are so smooth, and it almost takes no effort to push them down. The keystrokes are super light (smooth and linear Red switches). However, if you plan to type a lot on this keyboard for paper writing etc. you will have some learning to do since the key travel is a bit tighter than your typical laptop or full-size keyboard. For, gaming thanks to the tighter key travel, you don’t have to extend out your finger as far to quickly press some keys. The keyboard sounds really nice to type on. The dampening foam takes away any annoying clicky or clacking sounds but retains a deep sound that is quite satisfying for a keyboard enthusiast who cares how their keyboard sounds. This might be the best-sounding keyboard from a big brand like Corsair. The weight on the keyboard itself is heavy, so if you don't have a full-size mousepad and worry about your keyboard sliding, you won't have to with this one. the very grippy pad on the bottom with the weight will basically it stuck in place. The only problem I have noticed is that one of the grip pads on the bottom of the keyboard easily became detached and lost its adhesive quality. I will have to glue it back on, but wish I didn’t have to.
Software: iCUE is what you will need if you want to control the RGB on your keyboard to do different effects like Rainbow, ripple, etc. I noticed that sometimes the effect doesn't apply. You have to switch to a different effect, wait a couple of seconds to apply, and then go back to the one you like. It takes a bit for it to update your keyboard. The software is a great tool if you have a lot of Corsair products. There have been some glitches using iCUE.but nothing too difficult to overcome.
Features: The handy media control knob in the top right of the keyboard is very satisfying to use with precise click feedback as you rotate it. The knob can be programmed to do multiple functions aside from just volume! You can zoom in on pages, scroll vertically or horizontally on web pages, change brightness, and so much more! There are a lot of quick function buttons, you do not sacrifice a lot going with smaller size. Corsair thought it through by using all the keys on the keyboard as function keys if you hold down the FN Button.
Altogether, I am thrilled with this keyboard. It has the precision, elegance, and ruggedness of a hardcore gaming keyboard, combined with the utility, quietness, and versatility of a keyboard needed to work for wide range of uses like productivity in all sorts of devices from Windows, Mac, Android, and more! Thanks for reading and hope this review has helped to encourage your purchasing decision!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Say hello to the professional color inkjet printer for your home office from America’s most trusted printer brand, paired with the easiest-to-use print app. Enjoy easy printing designed to make you succeed at work. Fax included.
Customer Rating
5
An excellent choice for a versatile home work!
on February 2, 2024
Posted by: Bren
I have been absolutely thrilled with this printer! This printer is exactly what anyone could ask for in 2024 for a printer that is up to the tasks of home, family, and basic office admin work like scanning documents with efficient ADF and bed scan options. I have been thrilled with this printer from setup to our first print jobs. The touchscreen display is shockingly smooth and easy to use, a far cry from some of the sloppy and hard-to-press ones I have used in the past. I was able to get the printer set up with both my Apple and Windows products in the house with ease.
The only areas I am going to point out to potential buyers as something to keep in mind is the instant ink plan and general expense of the ink in general of this printer. The ink cartridges HP sells are God-awful expensive at times, and HP even advertises that they are actively working to eliminate non-HP printer ink chip cartridges from working. This is honestly fine if you only want to use the stock ink and are interested in the instant ink plan, but very high volume home offices may want to look for options that will have a lower cost per page printing wise over time. Thanks and I hope this review has been helpful!
I would recommend this to a friend!
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The HP Smart Tank 7001 supertank printer makes printing seamless from start to finish for the whole family with a high-capacity refillable ink tank and wireless connectivity. Create outstanding-quality color documents at a low cost with up to two years of Original HP Ink included in the box¹.
Is it supported by Big Sur Op System? Does it work with airprint?
It does work with airprint! I am having no problems on my Apple MBP currently :)
3 years, 8 months ago
by
Bren
The Canon imageFORMULA R10 portable document scanner is simple to set up and easy to use, anywhere. Easily convert paper documents to searchable digital files, using the built-in software, to get and stay organized.
Does this product scan both sides of a document? Is this user friendly? Thank you
Yes, it does scan both sides of a document and a card! I found it to be extremely user friendly, I just had to be patient with the updates to the software and firmware upon first setting it up :)
3 years, 8 months ago
by
Bren
The Apex 5 gaming keyboard has hybrid mechanical switches that combine the smoothness of a membrane switch with the added durability, performance, and satisfying tactile click of a blue mechanical switch. It also has per-key RGB customization, OLED Smart Display, aluminum alloy frame, premium magnetic wrist rest, and more.
Can the key caps be switched out with other key caps
Yes! They are compatible with most Cherry MX keycaps! From Steelseries' Blog post on the hybrid mechanical switches, "Like a blue switch, it registers a keypress with a click at 2mm, bottoms out at 4mm, and requires 50cn of force to press. Because it is a mechanical switch, you can even put aftermarket keycaps on them"
5 years, 3 months ago
by
Bren
The PRO headset from Logitech G is designed with and for esports pros. Aluminum forks, steel headband, and memory foam and premium leatherette head and ear pads keep you comfortable through marathon training and competition sessions. Pro-G 50mm drivers deliver incredibly accurate audio with improved bass response. The advanced USB DAC has a five-band onboard EQ that can be programmed via G HUB software with settings from your favorite esports pros. Pro-tuned, detachable boom mic with wind screen and pop filter ensures your comms are crystal clear. Designed for PC.
do these work for ps4?
Yes, the cable will plug into your PS4 controller and be good to go for use for audio and microphone use, no problem!
5 years, 11 months ago
by
Bren
With its Bluetooth interface, this Logitech MX Anywhere 2 910-004373 wireless mouse enables you to pair with up to 3 Bluetooth Smart Ready devices simultaneously. Darkfield Laser Tracking technology allows operation on most surfaces, including glass.
Does this product work for gaming?
Extremely well, depending on your needs. I use it for battlefield 1 and Doom and I love it. The programable buttons work awesome. For RPGs you may want a mouse that has more programable buttons, depending on your style :) If that is the case, I recommend the one's below:
Products from my answer
Razer - Naga Epic Chroma Wireless MMO Gaming Mouse - Black
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Razer - Naga Hex V2 Wired Laser Gaming Mouse with Chroma Lighting - Black
(188)
Razer - Naga Chroma USB MMO Gaming Mouse - Black
(903)8 years, 4 months ago
by
Bren
Razer Blade Laptop: Developed in partnership with Intel and NVIDIA, the Razer Blade delivers performance to run the most demanding games of today. Powered by an Intel Core i7 quad-core CPU, NVIDIA GeForce graphics processor and a 14" LED display, you'll be blown away by the immersive visuals of your games in crisp high definition 1080p.The Razer Blade features 6th Gen. Intel Core i7 quad-core processor. This ensures your games and media playback run with powerful processing performance anywhere, anytime.The Razer Blade features a high-performance NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 GPU. This means you play games the way they were meant to be played, with fluid frame rates and rich DirectX 12 graphics, and in VR.With NVIDIA Optimus technology, the Razer Blade combines great performance and great battery life by intelligently delivering power only when you need it, and conserving it when you don't.
Is this with QHD or Full HD?
Razer Blade Laptop: Developed in partnership with Intel and NVIDIA, the Razer Blade delivers performance to run the most demanding games of today. Powered by an Intel Core i7 quad-core CPU, NVIDIA GeForce graphics processor and a 14" LED display, you'll be blown away by the immersive visuals of your games in crisp high definition 1080p.The Razer Blade features 6th Gen. Intel Core i7 quad-core processor. This ensures your games and media playback run with powerful processing performance anywhere, anytime.The Razer Blade features a high-performance NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 GPU. This means you play games the way they were meant to be played, with fluid frame rates and rich DirectX 12 graphics, and in VR.With NVIDIA Optimus technology, the Razer Blade combines great performance and great battery life by intelligently delivering power only when you need it, and conserving it when you don't.
is this the newest one razer blade?
Only at Best BuyPlay your way to the top with this HP OMEN notebook. The Intel Core i7 processor provides lightning-fast response times, and the 1TB hard drive is enough for all your favorite games and apps with room to spare for music and video files. This HP OMEN notebook has a full-size backlit keyboard for fast, easy typing.
How long does the battery last and can the ram be upgrade
Battery has averaged 2.5 to 3 hours under normal use and 1 hour or so with gaming (as should be expected in any gaming laptop, really). The RAM can be upgraded given you are patient and careful when you unscrew and pry open the back. 8GB of 2133Mhz RAM is what it has stock in one of the two available slots.
8 years, 6 months ago
by
Bren
Only at Best BuyPlay your way to the top with this HP OMEN notebook. The Intel Core i7 processor provides lightning-fast response times, and the 1TB hard drive is enough for all your favorite games and apps with room to spare for music and video files. This HP OMEN notebook has a full-size backlit keyboard for fast, easy typing.
will programs be installed on the ssd before the hdd
Yes, they will be. By default to allow quick bootup and accessing times. You can select the 1TB "D" drive though when you are downloading. I keep all of my games on the 1TB drive and it has worked perfectly.
8 years, 6 months ago
by
Bren
Only at Best BuyPlay your way to the top with this HP OMEN notebook. The Intel Core i7 processor provides lightning-fast response times, and the 1TB hard drive is enough for all your favorite games and apps with room to spare for music and video files. This HP OMEN notebook has a full-size backlit keyboard for fast, easy typing.