explore42's stats
- Review count153
- Helpfulness votes571
- First reviewFebruary 26, 2016
- Last reviewOctober 16, 2024
- Featured reviews0
- Average rating4.3
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- Answer count24
- Helpfulness votes239
- First answerFebruary 26, 2016
- Last answerDecember 23, 2021
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Make your photos look amazing with Adobe Photoshop Elements 2021. The Adobe Sensei AI technology features a new face-tilt function, and its Guided Edits provide a new perfect-landscape feature. Adobe Photoshop Elements 2021 lets you easily edit photos, make clips, and create memes to share on your favorite social websites.
Customer Rating
5
It will make you Smile
on November 30, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
If you have owned or used Photoshop Elements in the past then you will feel very comfortable using the 2021 version. If you have never used Photoshop elements don’t worry because Adobe provides lots of optional help material. There are 58 guided edits that help you unleash the creative potential of your photos. This version has all the typical features you would expect and several that are truly amazing. Best of all this software does most of the magic for you so you can enjoy the editing of the photos as well as the end results. The software is as simple or as complex as you want or need it to be.
New Features I really liked: Fine tuning Faces including angles, improving the landscape by replacing the sky, moving and scaling items within the photo, adding motion to a photo to create animated GIFs and the auto back up feature for the Organizer catalogue.
The installation was simple and straight forward. I downloaded the software, logged into my existing Adobe account, entered my redemption key and then used the serial number to complete the installation. It’s a few more steps than using the dvd type installation but it wasn’t that complicated. Note to make sure you keep your redemption code and your serial number handy because you need them to install the software.
The home screen features a ribbon with creative and editing ideas that show you what is new and what is possible with the software. The items give you a quick overview which is helpful when deciding what to do next. The ribbon contains everything from how to share photos to various methods to edit your photos and even how to order prints and gifts if you happen to want those. Below the ribbon you select either to use the Organizer or the Photo Editor. The Organizer will catalogue all your photos and videos into a single workspace. There are lots of tools to help you organize your photos by tagging them by people, events, etc. This version now allows you to automatically back up your catalogue so you don’t have to worry about losing your photo library data. The photo editor has three editing modes: Basic, Guided and Expert. In the Guided mode there are over 55 tiles that show you an example of what each guided feature does and how it affects the photo. This makes it very easy when choosing what editing tools are needed since the software pretty much does it all for you. In the Expert mode all the editing tools are available individually and you can pick and choose what to use and how to use it. This mode gives you total freedom but it can also add to the complexity of the editing process. There are times that you will need to use the Expert mode to touch up the photo after the Guided mode is completed. I used the guided mode to move a little girl to the center of the photo and when I did this it left some of her curls floating where she was originally. I then used the Expert mode to remove the curls. While the Guided mode is not perfect it definitely makes the editing process much simpler.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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See the essential details, longer. Arlo Essential Spotlight has extended battery life and captures video in 1080p resolution with an integrated spotlight, color night vision, and an extended life battery. Wire-free and weather resistant, Arlo Essential works indoors or out. Set it up yourself in just a few easy steps and clearly see who’s there, even at night. With one year battery life¹, it’s perfect for high traffic locations or areas that are difficult to reach. Easily recharge your camera using the included indoor power cable (battery not removeable). Receive notifications and view videos that tell you a package, person, vehicle or even an animal is detected, so you can take quick action like phone a friend, sound an alarm or call emergency services with a trial of Arlo Secure included.² Personalize what you get notified for and create custom activity zones to ensure you only get alerts for what matters, reducing those that are less important.
Customer Rating
5
Quality Camera and App
on November 21, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
If you want a good Security camera that is simple to install and easy to operate this is best option that I have come across so far. The biggest concern I had originally was that this camera would be slow in sending alerts and activating the video to my phone and the battery power would not last. After installing the Essential XL and using it I can say I no longer have those concerns. The Arlo app alerts me quickly on motion detection and the video activates reasonably quick. Anyone who wants to monitor their property and doesn’t want to run wires or doesn’t have local power should definitely consider this camera. The only downside is that you have to sign up for subscriptions services if you want to use most of the features beyond the trial period and this includes accessing the video in the cloud.
Features: This camera is a full featured camera with a 130 degree field of view, a 12x zoom feature, a spot light – note this not a flood light, two way audio, a siren alarm and color night vision. The image can be rotated 180 degrees in case you have to mount the camera upside down. The biggest feature in this camera is its extra long battery life of about a year between recharges. The batteries cannot be removed from the camera as in other Arlo cameras and it does take some time to charge the battery. The charge time will depend on the usb charger you use since one is not provided with the camera. The Arlo app gives you complete control over the motion sensing, the alerting and the use of geo fencing. If you chose to purchase the Arlo Smart subscription you get Smart Notifications like detecting people, packages, cars and animals. You also get 30 day cloud storage with the Arlo Smart subscription.
Setup: The Essential XL Camera set up is fairly easy and is typical of most Smart Home devices. You have to download the Arlo mobile app on your phone, create an account and then follow the directions on adding the camera. It takes more time to mount the camera than it does to get it operational. Because the camera is wireless you have to make sure you have good wireless coverage in the area where you plan to mount it. You can quickly verify wi-fi signal strength by looking at your phone’s wi-fi settings while holding the phone where you plan to mount the camera. The camera’s mounting bracket can either be attached in the rear of the camera or under it. I mounted mine on my front porch and attached the mounting bracket to the rear of the camera. The camera mount is pivotable and allows you to tilt the camera to get the best viewing angle. There is a twist knob that you tighten down once you get the camera set into position and this locks the camera firmly in place. As mentioned above no USB charger is provided so although they provide a short USB-A to USB micro cable you will have to provide the charger. The first charger I tried was taking forever to charge the battery so I connected a higher powered one and the battery did charge faster. Once I had the camera mounted and working in the Arlo App I added the Arlo skill to my Alex app and now I can see my Arlo camera on my Echo Show using Alexa.
Video Quality: At 1080p this camera does not have the highest video resolution but for someone looking to monitor their doors or driveway this camera meets the requirements. The video is always crystal clear and the camera provides a wide view without having a fish-eye effect. The color night vision is not the most colorful but the image is good even in low light conditions.
App: You need Arlo’s mobile app to set up and manage the camera. The app is very intuitive and well thought out. The home page allows you to directly access the camera’s live view. From the home page you can also manage your devices, enter the Library where prior alert video is stored, go into settings as well as arm or disarm the camera. The app allows you to set up and manage the activity zones and you can set schedules or use geo fencing for arming or disarming the camera. If you pay for Arlo Smart you can also set up activity detection based upon packages, cars, people and animals. The Arlo Smart also has an emergency feature that allows you to trigger the siren, alert a friend or call 911.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Experience fast, reliable Wi-Fi 6 for your connected home. eero 6 uses the power of Wi-Fi 6 to support faster speeds to every corner of your space, increase your internet’s efficiency, and reduce network congestion compared to prior Wi-Fi standards. eero makes it easy to expand your system as your needs change. With cross-compatible hardware, you can easily add eero products in minutes. Best of all, you can say goodbye to dead spots and buffering. eero’s mesh wifi technology optimizes for your space—so you can confidently stream 4K video, game, and video conference across your home.
Customer Rating
3
Good Coverage but missing Features
on November 10, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
The eero 6 AX1800 is a wi-fi system for someone who wants a very simple wi-fi network. For anyone who wants to control their wi-fi network this router will not meet their needs. Even with the simple eero system configuration and set up I ran into several issues that may be problematic for someone who is not network savy. The overall coverage provided by the two satellite stations and the base unit is good. The plus side here is that due to coverage I am now able to get connectivity with the eero mesh set up where as before I had areas with no wireless connectivity from my existing router. The overall speed of eero system is difficult to determine which I explain below. The eero Wi-Fi system does not have any type of configurable Quality of Service – QOS which means you cannot control or limit the bandwidth being used by your kids playing games or streaming videos while you are trying to do your work in your home office. I think this is a major flaw in this system. Also, note that the main hub only has one available ethernet port for wired expansion and the satellites do not have any. This means everything has to be wireless or you need to purchase additional networking gear. The system does not support USB network drives. The app you use to control the eero system is very intuitive but it is only supported on phones and tablets, it is not supported on a laptop.
Setup: Setting up the eero system is very quick but this can be misleading. You download the app and follow the specific directions given in the app. They recommend you use the existing SSID and password that you have in your existing router so that everything comes up working when you turn off the old unit and turn on the new one. I followed these directions and for the most part about 70% of my devices did in fact come up working. The misleading part of this is that the devices did not show up in the eero management app as being on the network. In other words, I had smart plugs working on the network but when I looked in the eero app they were not listed as being on the network. To get all my devices to show up in the app I had to go to each device and delete the old network configuration and add a new one even though both configurations where identical. When the device signed into the network the eero app recognized the device and added it to the program. Sorry to say that just power cycling or rebooting the devices had no effect, only reconfiguring the network settings worked. Reconfiguring phones, tablets and laptops aren’t that time consuming but all the small devices like smart plugs, security cameras and appliances can take some time and patience. I also had an interesting issue when the eero router decided that accessing my isp gateway was a security risk and started blocking my access. Nowhere in the app is there a listing of blocked sites nor did I find a way to unblock the access.
Adding New Devices: Adding a new device was generally very simple but there were some devices that were very problematic. When I would add a new device the eero app would alert me that a new device joined the network. I would then open the app to name the new device and add a proper icon to the device. The app is very intuitive and it does show you what devices are connected to the router hub and satellites. Problems occurred when I tried to add devices like my vacuums that only supported the 2.4 ghz band. The eero router would attempt to add devices to the 5 ghz band and thus it constantly failed. After doing some searching I found an option hidden in the troubleshooting section that allows you to “Temporarily pause 5 Ghz”! Great idea to have this option but its too bad its buried in the troubleshooting section of the app.
Coverage: I placed the base unit and two satellites strategically around my house to cover the most space. My overall coverage when I checked with a wi-fi analyzer on my phone was better than what I had with my old single router.
Throughput Speed: This is very difficult to judge due to the lack of control and information you have with the eero router and app. My isp provides 500mb service to the gateway. The eero app verified that I was getting 500mb download from the gateway but I could never pull more than about 200 mb on my laptop or phone using Speed test. For this testing I was using a new Iphone 12 pro that supports wi-fi 6 and a standard laptop that did not support wi-fi 6. As I checked around the house the typical eero speed test was about 1/3rd less than my old router. I do not know if the eero router is limiting the download speed due to some type of internal configuration or if it is just that much slower. Also keep in mind that any devices connected via a satellite can be speed limited due to the connectivity between the main hub and the satellite.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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The Samsung Jet™ 75 Complete Cordless Stick Vacuum features a lightweight and maneuverable design and a removable battery that can be easily swapped* for extended cleaning time up to 60 minutes. Compatible with Samsung Clean Station™ for mess-free, automatic emptying of the hygienic dust bin. *Second battery sold separately.
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
Samsung’s Jet 75 Cordless Stick Vacuum is a versatile and portable cordless vacuum. The battery life using the vacuum with an Action roller is about 20 minutes on MID and only 9 on Max. While the suction is no match for a corded vacuum it does an ok job picking up dust and debris on hard wood floors. Due to the short battery life on Max the vacuum is only good for quick pick-ups on carpeting. The vacuum only weighs 6 pounds but those pounds are fully supported by your hand grip. Some may find the Dustbin and filtering components difficult to to clean and use. (see photo)
Pros: Versatile, easy to maneuver, well designed and solidly built, HEPA filtering, vacuum recharges in the wall mount and can also charge just the battery, Mid level suction is good enough for most jobs
Cons: Short battery life on Max, Less convenient dustbin assembly, small rollers on the power brushes, no carpet height adjustment, cannot turn off rotating brush in the Action heads,
Set up: The vacuum comes with a rather thick manual and it covers the basics like showing the various components, installing the wall mount, attaching the parts and maintaining the vacuum. All the components have a solid quick connect feature and are easily separated when needed. Samsung did a nice job designing these so that they are easy to use and solid in their build. You basically connect whatever components are needed to the main vacuum assembly and you are ready to go. The battery can be charged either in the vacuum or outside of the vacuum using the same charger assembly provided. This is helpful because if you pick up a second battery one can be charging in the charger while the other is being used in the vacuum.
Operation: The vacuum has a small indicator display that shows the status of the vacuum as well as any error warning. If you press the Power button the display will show the suction level the vacuum is in. By pressing the plus or minus button you can switch vacuum levels from Min to Mid to Max. The battery has LEDs on the side to indicate the battery charge level. Most of the time we run the vacuum for our hard wood floor on Mid and the battery last about 20 minutes. The vacuum comes with three powered attachments; the Turbo Action Brush, the Soft Action Brush and the Mini Action Brush. Using any of these three brushes will lessen your vacuum time because they have spinning brushes to agitate the surface. The action heads have very small rollers which makes these heads less agile on carpeting and mixed surfaces (see photo). The action heads cannot be adjusted for carpet height nor can the rotating brush be turned off. All three action heads do have a simple unlock that allows the brush assembly to be removed from its housing for easy cleaning. The vacuum has a 5 layer HEPA filtration system so it does a good job in capturing the dirt and exhausting clean air. There are three filters in the vacuum so emptying the dustbin and the overall maintenance becomes a little more complicated. The dustbin has to be unsnapped and slid off the rails of the vacuum head, then the inner filtering system has to be twisted and removed from the dustbin so you can empty the dustbin. While not overly complicated it is certainly more problematic both in removing and reinserting the dustbin. There is not a simple trap door on the dustbin to empty it like some vacuums have. The vacuum exhaust vents are high on the vacuum, near the handle. (see photo) If you are doing any type of overhead vacuuming be prepared to get a strong breeze in your face.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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The Tineco A10 Tango has the versatility and strong suction of A10 Hero and includes two full-size power brushes for a customized cleaning experience. The roller brush is designed to gently clean hard floors, and the multi-tasker brush grabs dirt and pet hair from all floor types. The A10 Tango makes the perfect cleaning partner for smaller homes and apartments, or as a supplemental vacuum to pick up daily messes throughout larger homes. The A10 Tango is designed for 3 in 1 use - clean your hard floors, carpets and hard to reach areas with the hand vacuum attachment.
Customer Rating
3
Good for Light Duty Jobs
on October 31, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
The Tineco A10 Tango vacuum is a lightweight modular stick vacuum that is capable of handling the light duty vacuum jobs around the house. Because its lightweight it is very maneuverable but this also means a lighter battery which means shorter run times. The suction on normal is enough to pick up the small stuff on hardwood floors and tiles and possibly carpeting. On the Max setting the suction power is greatly increased but the battery life drops to about 10 minutes. Even on Max with the powered Multi-tasker brush attached the vacuum could not raise the carpet nap enough to remove lines left by my robot vacuum cleaner. Bottom line is this is a good lightweight vacuum for doing hardwood floors and light duty cleaning but it isn’t going to handle carpeting as well.
Pros: Lightweight, easy to maneuver, well-constructed, lighted power brush, easy to empty dustbin, HEPA filtering, battery can be charged in or outside of the vacuum head
Pros: Lightweight, easy to maneuver, well-constructed, lighted power brush, easy to empty dustbin, HEPA filtering, battery can be charged in or outside of the vacuum head
Cons: Short battery life, Small dustbin, vacuum does not recharge when placed in the wall mount, no carpet height adjustment on the power brushes, cannot turn off the rotating brush in the power brush head, maintenance of the filters may be problematic for some
Setup: This vacuum has some of the best packaging I have ever seen. On the outside box it shows everything you should find inside and then inside each internal box is stamped with what is supposed to be inside it. It really makes assembling the vacuum and learning the various parts much easier. The vacuum comes with the main vacuum assembly, a large power brush, a large soft power brush, a mini power brush, a 2 in 1 dusting brush, a crevice tool and pre- filter cleaning assembly. (See Photo) There is also a wall mount bracket that also holds the attachments and a power supply to charge the vacuum. The attachments are easy to assemble and all the parts are well constructed and solid.
Operation: Operation is straight forward, the power button is a trigger type switch and there is a lock lever so you don’t have to constantly hold down the trigger. The vacuum has two speeds normal and Max. The Max speed is activated by pressing the Max button on top of the vacuum head. If the vacuum is run on normal the battery should last about 25 minutes but if you use the MAX setting the battery life drops to 10 minutes. There are three LEDs on the side of the battery that show the amount of charge in the battery. To recharge the battery you must connect the charger cable to the battery. This can be done with the battery in the vacuum or removed from the vacuum. (See Photo) The vacuum does not automatically charge when you place it in the wall mount which is a major drawback. Because the battery life is so short I would not recommend this as a primary vacuum for a house. We use the vacuum for quick pick ups, sweeping the hardwood floors and cleaning the steps. The vacuum has lights on the power brush heads which are handy when going under things but they can be distracting when vacuuming in the open due to their brightness. There is no on/off switch for the lights. There is no adjustment for carpet height on the power brushes and you cannot turn off the rotating power brush so the rotating brush is always brushing the floor. This vacuum provides multiple filters to capture the dust and debris. (See Photo) There is a pre-filter, a mesh filter and a HEPA filter. The pre-filter and HEPA filter will eventually need to be replaced whereas the mesh filter can be cleaned with the dustbin. There is an interesting pre-filter cleaner attachment that allows you to use the vacuum to clean the pre-filter but I am not sure its much help because you are sucking out the debris on an external pre-filter only to have it pulled into the vacuum and onto the pre-filter in the vacuum.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Discover ScanWatch, a hybrid smartwatch that detects heart health conditions and helps improve overall fitness. Nested in a high-end watch, state-of-the-art technology has been carefully selected to create Withings most health-oriented watch to date. Developed with cardiologists, this clinically validated hybrid smartwatch can alert a user to a possible case of atrial fibrillation (Afib). ScanWatch also offers in-depth activity and sleep tracking, water resistance to 5 ATM (165 ft), and an exceptional battery life of up to 30 days before it needs to be charged.
Customer Rating
3
Not the best for Exercise
on October 22, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
If you are looking for a health monitor to use during your day to day non-exercise activities the Withings Scan Watch might be worth considering. If you are looking for a health monitor to wear during any type of exercise I think you should consider something else. In using this watch I have found that it’s accuracy can vary quite a lot during exercise. During exercise sessions my heart rate is often reported several beats above or below what my chest strap monitor reads and I verified this by using two different brand heart rate monitors. On one cycling session which was intense/sweaty my average heart rate was only half of what my chest strap monitor recorded. Even under non strenuous exercise activities I have found that the heart rate values tend to be slightly over or under by a couple of beats fairly consistently. This happens on either wrist with the band tight and the watch worn as shown in the instructions. I had similar results when measuring my oxygen levels when compared to dedicated finger readers. As for the sleep detection, however I find that it detects my sleep time fairly well including the times when I wake up at night. I can’t comment on whether the depth of the sleep is accurate but the timing seems to be right. I can also say that the step count is pretty consistent and reasonably accurate although the two displays don’t quite agree (see photo). I walk the same route every day and the step count is consistently close to the same number afterwards. Because of the inaccuracies I have experienced using the measurements during exercise I only wear this watch for non-exercise activities.
The Withings Scan Watch is a fitness/health watch with the look of a classic wrist watch. (see photo) I think that Withings took a more traditional approach in this watch. Rather than create a plastic or rubberized looking watch like most of the competition they built the fitness functions into an attractive looking wrist watch. I got the sapphire crystal white faced watch and it looks as good with workout clothes as it does with a suit and tie.
This watch does the all the typical functions you would want in a fitness watch. It monitors your steps, distance covered, floors climbed, time and speed by utilizing the gps functions in your phone and an accelerometer built into the watch. Based upon this information and your personal profile the watch estimates calories burned and your overall fitness level. You can track your training using the 12 automatically recognized activities or you can manually select one of the 40 preprogrammed activities. The list is quite substantial and the activities are easy to set up if you choose one that is not auto-recognized. The watch also can monitor your sleep activity, breathing disturbances, your heart rate, your Sp02 oxygen level, as well as perform a medical grade ECG and watch for A-Fib heart arrhythmias. Lastly the watch can display notifications including activity notifications and text messages from your phone (see photo). The small display on the watch face will give you phone call alerts and display text messages but because the display is so small it is more of a notification than an actual display of the message. There is no function in the watch that allows you to respond to a text or phone call. The watch runs on a rechargeable battery and depending on how it is used can last up to about 30 days per the specs.
Setup: I hope because this watch is so new that the setup process will improve. The instructions in the box tell you to download the Health Mate App. When you first set up the watch it requires your personal profile information and inputting the date via the watch can take forever. This was very problematic with putting in a birth date because of the way they show the calendar. I found it was easier to input any date and then go back and edit the dd/mm/yy entry vs trying to flip through years and months in the app. Once you get the profile set up and the app syncs with the watch you are good to go for most of the common fitness and activity functions. I highly recommend going through the help center in the app to get the most use out of the watch.
Hardware: I really like the watch fit and feel. Its very light, the band is a rubberized band that looks nice but also keeps the watch tight to the wrist without being annoying. The digital display on the watch is a small circle in the upper half of the watch face. In the lower half of the watch there is another circle display that shows the number of steps taken that day. It’s a mechanical hand that indicates the percentage of your daily goal that has been reached. (see photo) To gain access to the various activities and monitoring features you use the side button – its like a watch crown but instead of pulling it out to set the time you press it in to access the menu and then rotate it to get the areas of interest. The watch supports swimming but should not be used for diving or snorkeling.
Health Mate App and Use: I have had the watch for a couple of weeks so far and I am still learning new features and functions. The application is menu driven with the four main areas being the home screen with all your latest measurements and trends; the dashboard screen with your activity, body, heart, nutrition and sleep data; the device screen which shows your watch settings and lastly your profile which shows your personal data used by the watch to provide information on your fitness (see photo). I have used other brands of fitness and health monitoring watches and I found that the Health Mate app is reasonably competitive with them when it comes to delivering the captured data. The App can be linked with Strava and several other fitness dedicated sites. It can also provide gps after-the-fact results to show where the activities took place but it does not provide any type of map routing. Because the watch can do so many functions it takes time to learn the various settings within the application. Luckily I found that most of the typical functions I use were auto recognized or easy to set up. Once it did decide my grass cutting was actually a cycling activity so the auto function is not totally fool proof.
Mobile Submission: False
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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Experience the power of high-performance business printing with the WorkForce Pro WF-4820. Providing high-speed printing, the WF-4820 blazes through high-volume print jobs at an astounding 25 black/12 color ISO ppm†. Built for productivity, this reliable printer consistently delivers sharp, professional-quality prints with innovative PrecisionCore Heat-Free Technology and vivid DURABrite Ultra instant-dry pigment inks. An efficient, easy-to-use solution, the WF-4820 offers convenient features designed to enhance efficiency and streamline workflow, including a large, 4.3" color touchscreen for intuitive navigation, a 250-sheet paper capacity, auto 2-sided printing, wireless connectivity and more.
Customer Rating
4
Perfect Fit for Our Home Office
on October 18, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
This Epson WF-4820 is a perfect fit for most small businesses or work at home offices. It provides the typical faxing, scanning, copying and printing capabilities that most people would need in a form factor that works for a small office. Compared to the laser printer we have the print image isn’t quite as sharp or have the same color depth but overall its fine for the typical day to day print and copy jobs. Our only gripe about the printer is that the exit tray is not well defined, has no stops at the end and is rather small. (see photo)
Features: The printer can print 25 black or 12 color pages per minute which makes it one of the faster printers in this price range. It can print up to 4800x2400 dpi and it can do automatic double-sided printing. There is a document feeder that hold 35 pages for copying or scanning. It has a dedicated fax line so you can fax directly from the machine using a land line without having to use a fax relay service. The printer uses Epson’s instant dry ink which means the ink doesn’t smudge however the paper still has a slightly damp feeling if it has a lot of ink on the paper. To control the printer there is a 4.3 inch display with intuitive instructions on how to use the printer. There is only one paper tray that holds up to 250 pages so you can only have one size paper loaded at a time. The printer uses 4 cartridges for ink, one black and three color. This is nice because you can replace a single cartridge when it runs out. Although there is no SD card slots there is a USB port on the front of the printer so you can print directly from a USB flash drive using the control panel.
Connectivity: We wanted a printer that could communicate via an ethernet cable as well as wireless and wireless-direct. Having wireless-direct we can let a visitor print directly to the printer without having to give them access to our wifi which is a good security feature. There is a short cut to activate wireless-direct right on the printer’s control panel home page. (see photo) The ethernet cable lets the wired computers print and the wireless feature lets us print from laptops, tablets and phones. So far we have been able to print from windows, ipads, android phones and chrome books with very little setup or issues.
Epson Software: I was shocked to find a CD with software and the manual actually included with the printer. Normally you have to download all that from the manufacturer’s website so having the CD does save some time in set up for the devices that still have drives. The software does give you the opportunity to install some additional Epson utilities besides the minimum required but its easy to unclick those if you don’t want them. The mobile app for the Ipads and Android devices were easy to install and have worked problem free. The software allows you to check the ink levels of the printer and does automatic updates to the printer so everything is kept up to date. (see photo)
Final Thoughts: This printer is quick and it provides competitive print quality. The ability to scan, fax or copy on demand makes this an extremely attractive printer. The document feeder so far has worked issue free but it’s not built for large jobs. This is not a super tank type printer so if you are planning on printing a lot its best to get the XL cartridges vs the standard cartridges that come with the printer.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Offering the ultimate true-wireless experience for any fitness-loving music lover, JLab Epic Air Sport ANC offers customized sound and active noise canceling plus industry-leading 70+ hours playtime. Transition from gym to calls or from work to a run, effortlessly, with features like wear-detect, movie mode, wireless charging and more.
Customer Rating
5
Perfect for Any Activity
on October 1, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
These Jlab Epic Air Sport ANC wireless earbuds set the standard in what earbuds are supposed to do. They are comfortable to wear, the audio quality is good, they last the full day between charges, the foam ear tips with the ANC help the outside world disappear and the JLAB app puts total control at your finger tips.
Features: These earbuds have nearly everything that I have ever wanted in earbuds. First off they are sweat and water resistant which means I can use them in all my activities. They have a wear detect sensor so the music pauses if I remove one of the earbuds without me having to do anything. The specs say I can go nearly 11 hours with ANC, without ANC I can get over 15 hours. The charging case is a little wider than some but its not as deep so it doesn’t show much when I have it in my pocket. The charging case has a built in USB cable and the leds on the front tell you the battery level as well as which earbud is being charged. What is really cool is that you can charge the case by placing it on a wireless charger. The app as mentioned below gives you total control over the earbuds. While its not perfect it still does a better job than many other apps I have used with earbuds. The earbuds have 3 pre-configured equalizer settings, Jlabs signature, bass boost and flat. You can also use the app to do fine adjustments to the equalizer. You can use either the left or right earbud singularly which I found nice when taking an unexpected phone call, I didn’t have to worry about which earbud I grabbed.
Operation and Use: I like the way that Jlab earbuds are made, you rotate them into your ear which for me offers a better overall tight fit. They also come with a set of foam ear tips which really helps limit the outside sounds. I found the Noise Cancelling to be reasonably good if I used the foam earbuds. If I used the silicon ear tips I still heard too much outside sound. With the foam ear tips I found the ANC would cut down but not totally eliminate the outside sounds which is what I would expect from earbuds vs over the ear headsets with ANC. Like other true wireless earbuds you can control the earbuds by using touch sensors on the earbuds. I found these to be slightly more sensitive than other earbuds that I have and it took a little time to get used to them. I really like all the features built into the charging case but what is kind of strange is that the left earbud is on the right side and the right earbud is on the left. The earbuds worked well when being used to take phone calls. Jlabs uses a dual microphones which helps with clarity and elimination of back ground noises. Sadly these earbuds do not have a mute function which I really would like to have. It would be nice to be able to mute a call using the earbud button versus having to dig my phone out of my pocket. The audio prompts built into the earbuds are concise and clear.
Audio Quality: Its hard not to like the overall audio quality of these earbuds. They aren’t audiophile quality but with the built in equalizer controls and the foam ear tips I was pleasantly surprised by how good they sounded. The bass was solid and the highs once adjusted sounded crisp. They do a good job with sound separation and provide a nice sound stage. Besides the 3 pre-configured equalizer settings you can create up 4 additional equalizer configurations that are accessed via the app. When I am working out or running I like to play the earbuds at an upbeat level and these earbuds stayed distortion free even at the higher volume levels.
JLab Air ANC App: Like the earbuds this app offers a lot of control but it isn’t very interactive which makes it less intuitive. The main sections of the app are Noise Cancellation, Equalizer, Customize Controls and Updates. In the Noise Cancellation page you can adjust the Noise Cancellation level as well as the Be Aware level which is the option to allow in ambient noise. So not only can you turn ANC on or off with or without outside noise you can actually adjust the level of each! Runners will find this very helpful. The equalizer in the app is a nice one with 10 frequency ranges that allow you to adjust the sound quality to meet your taste. The Custom Control page allows you to program the earbud switches to control volume, playback/track select, pre-programmed equalizer settings, noise control on/off and voice assistant. The Update page allows you to update the software in the earbuds. Everything in the app worked reasonably well however I did find some things not very intuitive. For example, when you go into the app and look at the ANC level it shows it with a white background when on and a slight light grey background when off. I would much rather had a green or red indicator or something easier to differentiate the on and off states. There is also a SET button that provides no feedback when pressed which leaves you wondering if anything happened. Bottom line is that the app has a lot of control but some of its usability is hampered by the lack of interactive notifications. Also the Upgrade page is nice but it doesn’t tell you what version your earbuds are to start with so you have no idea if the upgrade to the new version worked.
Issues with Sunglasses and Running: The ear hooks on these earbuds are more contoured than some other brands and hook my ears close to the top of my ear. The downside is that the hooks are fairly thick and not adjustable which causes my Oakley and Nike sunglasses to ride down between the ear hooks and my ears. For me because of the tight overall fit of the earbuds this is more of a nuisance than an actual problem but for some it could be an issue.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Print your memorable photos with this Canon SELPHY Square QX10 compact photo printer. The compact, lightweight design offers easy portability, while the dye-sublimation technology delivers quality quick-drying 2.7 x 2.7-inch prints that last for a long time. This Canon SELPHY Square QX10 compact photo printer has a built-in battery for cordless hassle-free printing.
Customer Rating
4
Photo Printer on the Go
on September 24, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
Canon Selphy QX-10 is a compact portable printer that I use to print photos on the go. The photos are smaller 2.7 inch square photos but the printer can reproduce up to 256 shades per color at a 287x287 dpi resolution. For the physical size of the photo the 287 dpi provides good resolution and the 256 shades provide vibrant colors with good depth and range. Overall I think the print quality is quite good and because it uses a dry imaging process the photos are ready to go as soon as they exit the printer. The printer only comes with 4 sheets of paper and a color cassette that will only print 4 photos so be sure to pick up a couple of boxes of Canon XS-20L with the printer, each one contains 20 sheets and a color cassette that will print 20 photos. One important feature of the photo paper is that you can peel off a back layer to expose a sticky back that allows you to stick your photos to things like an album or document. The sticky back is like the glue on blue painter’s tape so you can re-stick it a couple of times without having to worry about destroying the photo. Removing the back paper from the photo does take some time and good finger nails. The only negative as with most printers is the cost of supplies, if you aren’t careful you can go through a box of 20 very quickly especially if you like passing out photos.
Setup: The printer comes with a paper manual but I found that loading the Selphy Photo Layout app on my phone and following the directions in the app was better. The app walks you through all the steps from loading the paper and the color cassette to registering the printer using the QR code on the printer. I had the printer up and printing in very little time. The printer runs on an internal battery that uses a micro USB cable to charge. Canon provides the cable with the printer but does not supply a power adaptor so you will need to use either a spare adaptor or PC USB port to charge the printer. It takes about 2 hours to fully charge the printer and there is an LED indicator that gives battery status on the printer. You can also get the battery status by using the Selphy Photo Layout App.
App and Operation: The Selphy Photo Layout app has some basic features that allow you to do some enhancements and editing to your photos. Once you select the photo you need to click on the image to align it and then you use the items in the ribbon menu to enhance it. I personally found it easier to use the photo editor on my phone to make any enhancements to the photo prior to using the Selphy app. Basically the Selphy Photo Layout app converts the photo to the size and resolution that the printer can print, it does not have to be the primary photo editing software unless you prefer to use it that way. Because the printer is totally wireless and does not have a memory card slot it makes printing photos from my Canon Powershot ELPH camera a little more difficult. To print those photos I download the images from the camera to my pc and then email them to myself. I then open the email on my phone and save the images to my phone’s photo Gallery. If you do this you have to make sure your photos don’t exceed your email’s limit on file size. The printer can have multiple devices registered, we have an Android phone, an Iphone and an IPAD all configured with the Selphy Photo Layout app and all can print. It takes slightly less than a minute to print the photo and you have to make sure the photo slot is not blocked because the printer feeds the photo paper out of and back into the printer several times during the printing process.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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The Filtrete™ Maximum Under Sink Water Filtration System 3US-MAX-S01 is easy to install and maintain. It's an under sink water filtration system that connects to the kitchen or bath faucet.
Customer Rating
4
Great Water – Worrisome Connectors
on September 18, 2020
Posted by: explore42
from Cincinnati Ohio
I wanted to have good tasting filtered water from my kitchen sink’s faucet and the Filtrete Maximum Under the Sink Filtration System does a good job of doing that. My wife and I hated trying to fill up our coffee maker or our water bottles using the filtered water from the refrigerator. Now we can fill up our water containers using the kitchen faucet which is so much easier.
Everything I needed to install the filter under my sink was included with the filter. The directions were quite straight forward and there are several videos out there in case you would rather watch them. The installation relies on the use of several push on type connectors and one compression fitting so the entire process does not require a lot of work or special tools. I had mine fully installed within 30 minutes with minimal issues. One recommendation I have is to make sure your filter mounting bracket is not near your faucet’s retractable hose. The head of my faucet has a rather long hose that is stored under the sink when not extended and this could be problematic if it tangled with the filter’s mounting bracket.
Everything I needed to install the filter under my sink was included with the filter. The directions were quite straight forward and there are several videos out there in case you would rather watch them. The installation relies on the use of several push on type connectors and one compression fitting so the entire process does not require a lot of work or special tools. I had mine fully installed within 30 minutes with minimal issues. One recommendation I have is to make sure your filter mounting bracket is not near your faucet’s retractable hose. The head of my faucet has a rather long hose that is stored under the sink when not extended and this could be problematic if it tangled with the filter’s mounting bracket.
Once I had the filter installed I ran the filter for several minutes and noticed a slight reduction in the overall water pressure. The water flow was still adequate enough for us so it was not a major issue. I haven’t had the filter long enough to know if the water pressure will continue to drop over time but I plan on replacing the filter at 6 month intervals just in case. The water tastes great and I have confidence in the Filtrete’s filter doing its job removing any contaminates.
Concerns: I have no concerns with the quality of the filter or the quality of the water. But having done some DIY plumbing in the past I would have been much happier if they would have used or given me the option to use pre-made braded water lines with screw on connections versus the plastic push on connectors and compression fitting supplied with this system. During my installation when I first turned on the water one of my push on connectors leaked until I reseated it. Push on connectors have been around for a very long time and for the most part have been reliable but it still makes me nervous using them around my kitchen cabinets and floor.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Enjoy true high-definition surround sound from your home theater with this Definitive Technology speaker. With powerful left/right speaker dispersion and balanced surround sound, this speaker immerses you in an enjoyable audio experience. Sized to fit unobtrusively into home theater systems, this Definitive Technology speaker includes iconic design elements that enhance the visual aesthetic of your system.
Can I use them as atmos speaker setup
These are surround speakers. For full atmos sound you need speakers that bounce the sound off the ceiling. Def tech makes speakers specifically to do this. They attach on top of the tower speakers.
6 years, 8 months ago
by
explore42
This Danby Designer DDW1899BLS-1 built-in dishwasher's water-softener system helps eliminate select water-based minerals in locations where hard water is an issue. The 7 wash cycles provide versatile options to suit a wide range of cleaning needs.
Air Dry and Turn off Manually?
Can you confirm or clarify please. It says no heated dry so that means they have to air dry? One person said you have to manually hit button to turn off at end of cycle. Is this true?
Good question but not sure how to answer this. Its kind of magic because it uses some type of evaporation process. My old dishwasher had a heated dry and an air dry. If you used the air dry the dishes were still wet at the end of the cycle. With this unit the dishes are fully dry without using a heater element. The manual explains the technology but bottom line is works fine for me and uses less electric.
8 years, 8 months ago
by
explore42
Clean every inch of every dish. This Samsung appliance washes away heavy foods without the need for you to pre-rinse. Plus, the quiet operation mean you won’t be interrupted by loud noises while the dishwasher is running.
Is this hardwired or does it plug into an outlet?
Contractor needs to know: Is this hardwired or does it plug into an outlet?
Mine is hard wired. I would suspect it is whatever the installer chooses to do.
8 years, 8 months ago
by
explore42
Whirlpool Gold 24" Tall Tub Built-In Dishwasher: Ensure a deep and sanitized clean with this high-powered dishwasher. Its soil-sensing technology, along with a unique silverware spray mechanism, produces exceptionally clean dishes for a generous amount of family and guests.
Rotating spray arm?
Wondering if this dishwasher has a rotating spray arm that sits under the class rack? There are no photos that show the interior.