Share Windedhiker's profile
Windedhiker
Windedhiker's stats
- Review count7
- Helpfulness votes40
- First reviewNovember 13, 2015
- Last reviewAugust 6, 2016
- Featured reviews0
- Average rating4.6
Reviews comments
- Review comment count0
- Helpfulness votes0
- First review commentNone
- Last review commentNone
- Featured review comments0
Questions
- Question count0
- Helpfulness votes0
- First questionNone
- Last questionNone
- Featured questions0
Answers
- Answer count0
- Helpfulness votes0
- First answerNone
- Last answerNone
- Featured answers0
- Best answers0
Windedhiker's Reviews
Redeemable at most Starbucks locations, these Starbucks gift card enables you to easily purchase your favorite beverages and treats. Register the cards using My Starbucks Rewards to earn beverages and other items.
Customer Rating
5
Starbucks Gift Cards... A great reward!
on August 6, 2016
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
I like to give gift cards to Starbucks because it is a small enough amount that you don't feel like you went out and bought something really expensive, and at the same time, it is nice because it is an affordable way to give someone an unexpected treat.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
This Sony home theater AV receiver has seven amp channels and is high-resolution audio compatible. This receiver delivers lossless quality sound with DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD audio and uses the latest video standards supporting 4K and HDR-compatible HDMI. Stream music from Wi-Fi, AirPlay, Google Cast and Bluetooth with this Sony home theater AV receiver.
Customer Rating
4
A great way to start your home entertainment
on July 22, 2016
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
I have a Sony HD TV I bought back in 2009 from Best Buy and the promo at the time was to get a free home theater system to go with the TV. I loved the system because even in a smaller room, and with the budgetary constraints I still had an awesome experience every time I used it.
Fast forward to 2016, and my Sony TV is still going strong, but my home theater system died. I tried a few other Sony models before settling on this model. I have thoroughly enjoyed many of the features of this system, but there are a few things to keep in mind.
1. Airplay - Airplay is Apple's proprietary screen mirroring technology. The receiver is Airplay capable, however, buyer be ware, you are not going to get Video Airplay functionality. Sony does not license that feature (not sure if other brands do) so unless you have an Apple TV, I do not believe you will be able to avoid also purchasing an Apple TV to do full screen mirroring of your Macs, or iOS devices. Also keep in mind the requirements for Airplay Screen mirroring, you need to have a Mac that is newer than 2011 I believe. Most Macs in the wild fit that category, but there are a few of us who have older Macs and the screen mirroring is not going to happen simply because the video cards in the older Macs were not meant for the load intensive activities you see in today's devices. My '09 Macbook Pro was just one of those cases. Trying to connect my Macbook Pro to the home theater system was a challenge, and the resolution was a pain to get right. If screen mirroring is something you are looking to have, save yourself the despair, and upgrade your Mac
2. The alternatives for screen mirroring technologies are Chromecast, and Miracast. The beauty of this receiver is Chromecast. Like many others, I plunked down for a Chromecast, and was hopeful I'd be able to do screen mirroring with it. My old home theater system was released prior to Chromecast, so the technology was simply not available.Given my '09 Macbook Pro was my workhorse, I used Chrome to do screen mirroring. My Macbook Pro was too old to be able to carry that load so Chromecast was painful and would disconnect, have latency issues, etc. I have not had a PC in many years so I cannot speak to Miracasting, but I do have an Android tablet which has Chromecasting abilities. This receiver is AWESOME for Android tablet screen mirroring. I find it is just as stable as a newer Mac connecting to an Apple TV. Definitely a way to go.
3. Sound Effects/Fields are interesting because of the potential for having those environments change the sound of what you are watching. I am not exactly a big fan of watching or listening to content using the sound effects or sound fields that a lot of devices offer. This is no different with this receiver, and often times I find it takes a bit of adjusting to get it right. I am trying to relax and enjoy myself, and the thought of having to try different sound fields before I get to enjoy a movie, show, event, etc, gets old and I find if you leave it on your basic non-filtered sounds, you don't always get a great experience so you're often times forced to try things out, and I find I settle on a setting in the end. This is further challenged by the fact that this is a receiver which is capable of 7.2, and I have a 5.1 system. One thing Sony does which is good though is they sell the receiver with a microphone to help calibrate the sound field in your environment. I have used this feature a few times even after setting it up the first time. The reason being you can adjust the size, distance, and volume of each speaker. Sony also has some other features on the audio side like Pure Direct, Sound Optimizer, etc. I have played with these some, but again, I bought this system to enjoy it, not make another chore of it. Perhaps if I had Geek Squad set it up, I might have a different experience on the sound side of things, but it is what it is and I have found settings that work for me.
4. HDMI Connect/Bravia Sync/HDMI CEC - These are all the same thing which means you can have your Sony receiver control other items in your environment which have one of those HDMI related services available. This can be a great feature because you can eliminate the clutter of other remotes. Whenever I used Bravia Sync, it would work for some items, but not for others. One particular issue is if I used Bravia Sync and screen mirroring to my Apple TV, I would get audio through the receiver which showed a visualizer screen indicating track number, artist, time, etc, but the Video content was on a different channel altogether. I tried this many different ways and eventually realized I had more important things to do and gave up on it to some extent. Sony does have this iOS app called Songpal. It is a bit misleading because who would associate "Song" with video? Be that as it may, there are some features available which can be useful through the app. You can add certain 3rd party apps to Songpal and gain some new features like displaying lyrics for audio playback. Programming the HDMI Inputs and associated settings is available, but the UI is poor in my opinion. I say this because for something which is connected via HDMI, things like Game systems, or CD Players, etc, show up as either connected via co-axial, or digital SDIF/Toslink, etc. It is an HDMI device, you should be able to list it as such. This receiver does have (1) HDMI ARC channel which is nice because you can connect something up to the receiver like an HTPC, and have the audio play through the receiver without having to run an additional connection to your TV. With HDMI ARC, you connect the device via HDMI and the receiver splits the signal automatically sending the audio to the speakers and the video to your TV.
The remaining features are plentiful, and the receiver can run multiple speaker configurations spanning two rooms at the same time. I do not have a need for that nor tested it so I have no insights I can offer. The video upscaling is a great feature to have and this receiver in my experience has exceeded my expectations in that regard. I never thought an HD TV would have HD content that could be displayed better than HD. With all the 4k content the absence of a 4k TV could be a real downer, but the upscaling feature has been amazing. At times I have to stop and really look at the picture because for a TV this old, and with as many hours as I have used it, the picture still looks amazing to me, even in 3D. The receiver enhances the signal and to me makes it even better. So, if you're waiting till your 1080p HD TV fails before you upgrade, this receiver gives you a nice incremental improvement.
I think this is a great receiver for the price, and I have not regretted it. I just think there are some things to keep in mind which may or may not be an issue for you. It is definitely a Sony product, and it like all Sony products it can be great if they use industry standard features, or it can be a pain if they are using their own proprietary technology. I think all in all, it is great addition and you won't be sorry.
I think this is a great receiver for the price, and I have not regretted it. I just think there are some things to keep in mind which may or may not be an issue for you. It is definitely a Sony product, and it like all Sony products it can be great if they use industry standard features, or it can be a pain if they are using their own proprietary technology. I think all in all, it is great addition and you won't be sorry.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
+30points
32of 34voted this as helpful.
Kick back with immersive entertainment with this 7.2-ch. Sony STRDN1060 receiver, which features 4K Ultra HD resolution to deliver dynamic visuals with robust sound. Connect your Bluetooth-enabled device to wirelessly stream your favorite tunes.
Customer Rating
5
Reasonably priced, feature rich receiver
on April 30, 2016
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
I have had a few different Sony receivers in the past few years as my old equipment broke, or it was simply time to upgrade. I had a choice of different models, and manufacturers but I chose this because of airplay, chromecast, DLNA, video content, and the sound processing. What I actually use more than all of those is the bluetooth transmitter. There is nothing worse than having to watch a great movie with all kinds of special effects and sounds only to barely be able to enjoy it because everyone at home is asleep. That's where the bluetooth transmitter comes in handy.
I also really like the picture upscaling. Even though we have HD content, compared to 4k, it is a noticeable difference. There are times when I have some older SD content that gets upscaled and this receiver reduces that noise a lot. It isn't going to be HD quality, much less 4k quality, but it certainly looks a lot better than your garden variety SD.
I also would recommend if you can get banana plugs to do so because this is one of those simple things which can be overlooked and considered irrelevant at first, but then down the road you regret not getting them. I have found the banana plugs made swapping receivers out if God forbid they break such an easy thing to do with banana plugs. Otherwise you're stuck with the thumb screws and blindly trying to tighten the screws enough, etc, etc.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
+1point
1of 1voted this as helpful.
Fitbit Charge HR Wireless Heart Rate + Activity Wristband: This heart rate and activity tracking wristband is built to capture your movements and health patterns all day long. Easily monitor your heart rate so you can maximize your workouts, learn about your sleep quality and monitor progress on your goals.
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
I purchased this to see if it would meet my needs as my needs aren't exactly like other people's needs. I found the HR to work nicely, it was comfortable, but I wanted to do some additional programming with the device and I was not able to. The product worked well though and didn't have any issues.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Treat yourself or a friend to delicious coffee, pastries and other foods and beverages with this Starbucks $25 gift card, which can be redeemed for a variety of menu items at Starbucks locations.
Customer Rating
5
What's not to love?
on March 6, 2016
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
I use gift cards as performance rewards. By going to Best Buy, it gives me ideas of what's new, how to motivate the people who work for me, and to see how I can boost their productivity while doing something nice for them like a simple Starbucks card.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
This Sony DVPSR210P DVD player features progressive scan for a crisp, smooth picture and built-in Dolby Digital and DTS decoders for quality audio.
Customer Rating
4
Exactly what I needed
on November 13, 2015
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
My old dvd player died and I don't have any time for complicated equipment, or a bunch of features I don't need. This was the right price and it takes care of all my needs.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
+1point
1of 1voted this as helpful.
This Honeywell Air Genius 5 Air Purifier features 5 levels of cleaning power and patented ifD® technology to capture up to 99.9% of microscopic airborne particles*1 ( 1 From the air that passes through the filter, 0.3 microns and larger. 2 Based on 3rd party independent CADR testing for the smoke CADR value when operated at the highest level. Air circulation depends on many factors, such as room size and configuration. There is no guarantee that all of the air in a room will pass through the filter. 3 The ifD® particle filter and foam pre-filer can be washed to clean. 4 When operated with the odor reducing pre-filter. It is recommended that the pre-filter be replaced every 3 months to effectively reduce common household odors and VOCs in a room).
Customer Rating
5
Ahhhhhhh!
on November 13, 2015
Posted by: Windedhiker
Verified Purchase:Yes
I live with a chef who cooks with a lot of very pungent ingredients. Our HVAC sucks in air from the kitchen and dumps it in my room. I've been to 3rd world countries that smelled better than it did in my room! I was getting sick from the smell, and started breathing less deeply because it was so hard to inhale with how bad the air smelled. Every day I would open my window and try and air out my room. My bedroom window doesn't get much air and my room is a bit small. I did a little research and found this air purifier. Holy cow what a difference!
I like that the filters can be cleaned and that I don't have to buy new filters all the time. This oscillates but I don't need that. It also has an ambient light at the base which I also don't need. Thankfully the lights on top aren't bright enough to keep me awake at night. It also has 5 different levels of cleaning so during cold season, it will kill germs and (potentially) keep you from getting colds/flu.
I have literally lost weight because I can actually breathe deeply again.
My only regret is I wish I had this years ago.
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
My Best Buy number: 2714290982
I would recommend this to a friend!
Share this review:
+5points
6of 7voted this as helpful.
Windedhiker's Review Comments
Windedhiker has not submitted comments on any reviews.
Windedhiker's Questions
Windedhiker has not submitted any questions.
Windedhiker's Answers
Windedhiker has not submitted any answers.