Batlacit's stats
- Review count195
- Helpfulness votes911
- First reviewFebruary 13, 2016
- Last reviewJune 19, 2024
- Featured reviews0
- Average rating4.4
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- Answer count55
- Helpfulness votes97
- First answerSeptember 21, 2016
- Last answerJanuary 21, 2022
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ASUS TUF Gaming Laptop. Enjoy everyday gaming with this ASUS notebook PC. The Intel i7 processor and 16GB of RAM let you run graphics-heavy games smoothly, while the potent NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 graphics produce high-quality visuals on the fast 15.6-inch 240hz FHD display. This ASUS notebook PC has 1TB SSD that shortens load times and offers ample storage.
Customer Rating
4
Compact and powerful, but pushing the limits a bit
on February 19, 2021
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
The Dash F15 is an ultraportable that makes a valiant effort to do it all. With a modern ultra-thin design and cutting edge hardware it is the kind of machine we could only dream about building just a few years ago. Unfortunately it still can't quite escape the basic truth that squeezing all the hardware of a gaming desktop into a package this small requires some compromises that keep it from being the one machine that can do everything.
First up I would like to talk about the build quality. As expected from ASUS a lot of care has gone into the design, producing a satisfyingly rugged device that still manages to look classy. The case is a mix of metal and plastic with no significant flex to it. The feet at the bottom are quite a bit more proud than you usually get on a laptop in order to increase clearance around the cooling intakes, a very smart design that also makes it clear that you do not want to have this thing sitting on your lap while you game. It also claims to have a self-cleaning cooler, something that I have no idea how to test but would be an absolute godsend if it actually works. Dust buildup in the cooling system is one of the biggest causes of failure in machines like this, so anything that can combat it wins a thumbs up in my book. They've built a generous notch into the back of the monitor to keep it from impeding airflow, which as a side benefit gives the unit a very unique profile when closed. They even bulked out the side of the case enough to include a proper RJ-45 jack for ethernet as opposed to one of the hinged fold-out jacks that admittedly look better, but break easily. While I obviously am not insane enough to throw it down the stairs to confirm it, the feeling it conveys is that of a laptop that's easily rugged enough to be thrown into a backpack and used as a daily driver for years.
Moving on to aesthetics, it's slightly more understated than you might expect from a gaming laptop which, depending on your tastes, could be seen as one of its best features. The only thing that really gives away the fact that it's meant for gaming is the fact that it's got a backlit keyboard which clearly accentuates the WASD keys. But there's no RGB, very limited effects options, and they've opted for a very soft and non-threatening aqua color for the lighting rather than the usual aggressive reds, yellows, and oranges I generally expect from ASUS's TUF line. The monitor features very thin bezels around the top and sides as well as a prominent chin, with no web cam to break up the lines. Overall I'd describe the look as more classy rather than aggressive.
Which brings us to the elephant in the room: performance.
I spent a lot of time mulling over how I could possibly talk about the performance of this laptop without making it look better or worse than it actually is. Ultimately I decided the best way to do it was to establish right off the bat that while the GPU inside it may be called an RTX 3070, it has very little in common with the desktop card that most people are probably judging it by. We've hit an unfortunate plateau in the performance of this new generation of chips where the sophistication of our silicon has outstripped the abilities of our cooling solutions. As such the RTX 3070 chip in this laptop is forced to run with about half the wattage it was originally designed for to avoid melting the thing, which can't help but severely slow down the card. In benchmarks and real world testing it basically tied with the RTX 2080 in just about everything but raytracing performance, where it enjoyed a small (but significant) advantage. Which makes the long term prospects of this thing a bit complex. It can run modern games like Cyberpunk 2077 at maximum settings with a decent framerate, sure. But it's obviously having to throw everything it has into it. As such I do have to wonder how well it's going to be able to play games that'll release in two or three years, which will presumably be leaning much heavier into the kind of advanced features available in the latest generation of consoles and therefore asking a lot more of the GPU. Now, to be clear, I would be astonished if it couldn't still play them at reasonably high performance levels. It is still a ludicrously powerful machine for this price point. But it is important to understand that it's nowhere near as close to matching gaming desktop levels of performance as previous generations of laptops have been, and that this is likely to be the norm going forward.
With that massive disclaimer out of the way though, I would like to repeat that this is a ludicrously powerful machine for its size. The Rocket Lake i7 may not have tons of cores but the ones it has offer excellent performance, and even if it can't quite match the performance of a desktop card the mobile 3070 is a beast of a GPU that makes full use of the frankly amazing 240hz panel that ASUS chose to include. This laptop's screen is probably the best monitor I have ever owned, and I really don't know how I should feel about that. And everything is supported by a slightly cumbersome but extremely well thought out set of software and utilities which will let a skilled user configure the laptop exactly the way they like it. As an example, one of the first things it asked me to do upon getting it set up was configure the maximum level of charge the battery could take based on my expected use. I ended up setting it to only charge to 60% to maximize lifespan, as most gaming laptops spend their lives tethered to a wall outlet anyway. With a battery this big that's still enough to last around 8 hours when needed (provided you're not gaming on it, at least) and it'll probably add years to the battery's life, which makes me always glad to see such an option.
There are a few features that I'll admit I would have liked to see added. While I really wouldn't have thought much about the decision to nix the webcam a couple years ago it feels weirdly out of touch these days, where so many people are transitioning to remote work and video conferences are more popular than ever. I also have found myself missing having a full numeric keypad, as weird as that might sound. And it needs to be said that this might be one of the noisiest laptops I've ever gamed on, as the fans tend to really squeal when they ramp up to full power. But with a decent pair of headphones (which you should be using anyway - the laptop is way too thin to have decent speakers) I can definitely live with it.
So, where does that leave us then?
Well, despite its best efforts this really isn't a laptop that can do everything. A 4 core CPU (even a hyperthreaded one) doesn't have enough threads for serious content creators and the mobile 3070 doesn't have enough power to stay out ahead of game developers for very long. But ultimately, that's okay. For a user like me who already has a desktop to take on the really heavy workloads I don't need a portable machine that can do absolutely everything. I just need one that can do enough. Something that I can take notes on during meetings or do work on a plane during the day, then bring back to my hotel and fire up games on at night. And the Dash F15 is ideal for that purpose. It's not as heavy or fragile as the cutting edge gaming laptops, but it's also not as computationally anemic as your average ultraportable. It straddles the divide, being everything I need in a supplement to my other machines. I'd definitely recommend it to people like me as well as students, hobbyists, or the gamer who doesn't consider "medium settings" to be a dirty word.
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Blend, Juice or Bluice. High Performance blender juicer with an innovative and unique space saving design. Featuring our Hemisphere contoured blade & Bowl system, a 3.5" extra wide chute for shortened prep time. Cold Spin Technology extracts fresh juice straight into a high capacity 50 oz blender jug, so you can create delicious fresh, slushies, smoothies cocktails and much more.
Customer Rating
5
Blender+Juicer=Bluicer?
on January 29, 2021
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
I'd like to begin with a warning. When I first saw the picture of this thing, I assumed it would take up roughly the same footprint as your average blender while in juicer mode, having never owned a juicer before myself and therefore not knowing that they needed a fairly large collection bin for all the pulp they generate. It's about twice the size of what I was expecting, leaving me in a bit of a bind when it comes to counter space. That said, I think it might be worth figuring out a solution.
The Bluicer fulfills pretty much all the claims made on the box. Over the last week I've tossed just about every fruit and vegetable I could think of into the hopper of this thing, and it's handled each one with flair. Previously I often found myself having to throw out produce that went bad while it was waiting to be eaten, but with this thing as soon as I notice that we might not be consuming it quite as fast as expected I can just throw it all in the hopper and use the results to add a bit of extra flavor to recipes, freeze it for the long haul, or just drink it to get some much needed vitamins. The pulp still ends up as compost mostly, but it still feels like progress from where I was before.
Performance is just about as good in blender mode too. The pitcher design allows the blades to produce a pretty astonishing amount of suction to pull anything that might tend to float or get stuck at the top down to be shredded, noise isn't exceptional, and the locking safety bar holds everything together about as firmly as anything I've ever seen. The pre-programmed shortcuts are a bit sparse in terms of what they let you do, but all the basics are there.
Finally, there's the "Bluice" mode. ...Bluice mode is basically just juicing something, putting the juice into the blender, and then blending that. You could arguably just call it margarita mode.
Build quality overall is excellent. Most of the parts are machine washable, and tools are included to help clean out the bits which aren't. Clean-up times rarely ever took more than five minutes, most of which was spent disassembling and reassembling the various pieces. There is a bit of added prep needed for some fruits, most notably citrus which must be peeled before you throw it into the blender to avoid contaminating the final product with pith, but you make up for that with the fact that running the machine is basically effortless. It also doesn't add much in the way of heat as it works. Any fruit that you pull out of the fridge will produce juice that's almost as cold.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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The Blue Pure 411+ air purifier offers high performance, simple one-button operation, and customizable colors - all in a lightweight, compact package. The air purifier creates a comfortable environment with a 360° air intake to completely filter room air about every 12.5 minutes or about 4.8x an hour in small rooms up to 185 ft². The 3-step combination particle + carbon filter removes annoying household odors, as well as 99.97% of airborne particles, like pollen, dust, pet dander, and more with Blueair's HEPASilent™ filtration technology. The Blue Pure 411+ is rated by ENERGY STAR for energy efficiency and awarded the Quiet Mark for impressively quiet operation. Easily adapt the Blue Pure 411+ to your space with multiple pre-filter color options, machine-washable pre-filter in Dark Shadow is included. Or, for a Scandinavian look, go without a pre-filter altogether to show off the sleek, white-mesh frame. At Blueair, our Swedish heritage inspires sustainability and quality at the heart of everything we do. All Blueair purifiers are AHAM Verifide® for Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) and given a recommended room size, ENERGY STAR certified, and tested by the California EPA Air Resources Board (CARB) for safe ozone emissions.
Customer Rating
5
Stylish and quiet filter for the bedroom
on January 13, 2021
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
One of the many things I've learned this past year spent mostly indoors is that my dust allergies are far more annoying than I ever realized. As such I've been running an air filter in my bedroom/home office pretty much non-stop to try and stay out ahead of them. The Blueair Pure 411+ has proven to be a tremendous upgrade over the unit I was using for most of the year in just about every category.
In the box you get the filter itself, a few pages of instructions, and a pre-filter which is basically a large tube sock that you stretch over the intake. Getting it all set up was fairly painless, though it took a few tries to get everything perfectly arranged to get the seamless look they advertise on the box. The unit I got came with a gray cover that complemented the white finish nicely, though there are a variety of other colors available to fit your decor.
Once I'd gotten the filter set up at the foot of my bed and turned it to the lowest setting, the improvement over the old filter was immediately apparent. At the lowest setting the fan is truly whisper-quiet - I could barely hear it at all when laying in my bed. At level two it's closer to a white noise machine or a very small fan. It's only really at level three that it starts to make its presence known, at which point it also makes for a pretty passable fan for circulating air around the room. And in a particularly nice touch, the status light indicating the current fan speed dims to almost nothing after three seconds.
As far as actual filtration goes it seems pretty solid to me so far. My allergies have definitely improved, and a quick inspection of the filters showed that it is indeed catching a fair bit. Most of it does seem to be in the finer layers inside the unit, so I'm not entirely sure how much the washable pre-filter is actually catching, but it's possible that I just haven't been running it long enough to get much accumulation.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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Bose Sport Open Earbuds are true wireless earbuds like you’ve never seen or heard before. What makes them truly unique is that they are the first workout headphones of their kind that combine exclusive Bose OpenAudio technology with an innovative open-ear headphone design to produce high-quality sound without covering your ears. This allows you to hear your music and the world around you for an unbelievable, full-sensory experience. The city. The surf. Your running buddy. Hear it all and your music at the same time with these entirely new, entirely open sport earbuds. Sound is what motivates, and Bose Sport Open Earbuds deliver. The exclusive Bose OpenAudio technology produces clear, consistent sound that’s more authentic and comfortable than bone conduction. In addition, acoustic spillage is minimal thanks to speaker placement that’s closer to the ear. A comfortable and secure fit is crucial when exercising. These sport earbuds were rigorously designed and tested to gently rest on your ears while staying put no matter how intense your workout. Bose Sport Open Earbuds also offer up to eight hours of play time (with daily charging), an advanced mic system for crystal-clear calls, and IPX4 sweat and weather resistance. Now you can combine the environment that invigorates you with the content that motivates you.
Customer Rating
2
I really wanted to like these...
on January 8, 2021
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
Earlier this year I got a pair of Bose sunglasses which contained a set of near field speakers in the arms allowing you to listen to music, books, or navigation directions without impeding your ability to hear the outside world or having a pair of very expensive earbuds fall out onto the road. They quickly became my absolute favorite accessory to take on a bike ride, however they had one very obvious flaw: they were sunglasses. They aren't exactly the kind of things that are ideal to use at night, when you might really need those navigation instructions, or on days where you've got heavy clouds reducing the amount of ambient light. As such I was very excited to see that Bose had put the same kind of tech into a more conventional pair of earbuds, as it seemed like a perfect device to take on adventures now that winter has come and days have gotten shorter. But after two days of trying my level best to fall in love with them like I did with my Frames, I've reluctantly had to admit that I can't.
There are a whole lot of decisions that were made with these things that I have a hard time understanding the reasons for. To start, these are the first pair of wireless earbuds I've seen in a long time that don't integrate the charger for the units directly into their carrying case. Instead you get a fairly standard rigid carrying case along with a bulky desktop charger that you need to drop the earbuds on, and for the life of me I cannot understand why. As far as I can see there's plenty of room in the design of the carrying case to run the necessary wires and pogo pins to have it serve double duty, particularly if you omit the usual supplemental battery that such cases include. It would have made these something I'd have no issue bringing with me on long camping trips, knowing that I could recharge it anywhere just by plugging it into the same portable power bank/solar chargers that I use to keep my phone running. But if I want to have more than eight hours of use with this thing I have to bring the entire rather clumsy and fragile looking charging dock with me, adding unnecessary bulk to my pack and running the risk that I'll destroy the thing to boot. I would have gladly put up with an even larger case for that, and I just can't see myself bringing these any further afield than the local gym without that feature.
That being said, I probably wouldn't be missing much. Because these are, bar none, the most uncomfortable earbuds I have ever used. Since they aren't actually sticking anything inside your ear, everything depends on a rigid arm running up to the speakers designed to wrap around the back of your ear and hold it in place. Now to their credit, it does a surprisingly good job of staying on even when you're engaged in vigorous exercise. But as far as I can tell the only reason it can is because it pinches down on one of the most sensitive parts of your ear and never lets go. When these first arrived I decided I'd test out the battery life by wearing them all day while I worked. I ended up spending a good two hours fiddling with them to try and find some position where I didn't have to choose between constant low key throbbing pain or having them fall off the moment I leaned forward. At one point I thought I'd managed to find a good balance, but then I got up to go for a run and within a few minutes the motion of my head had sent them right back into painful territory and I found myself stopping almost constantly trying to slide them back.
To be entirely fair to Bose, there are a lot of things that they absolutely nailed here. The audio quality is astonishingly good even with all the background noise they let in. They leak remarkably little audio to anyone who might happen to be next to you, given that everything's just sitting out in the open. The battery really does last almost 8 hours. And they are quite sturdy, having stood up to several six foot falls and one misadventure in a snowbank without so much as a scratch to show for it. But these are not enough to make up for what feel like a fundamentally flawed design that rules them out for just about everything I'd hoped to use them for. If the engineers at Bose keep working at this and come up with a more ergonomic mounting system and a travel friendly charging case, I think this could be a fantastic product. But for now, my recommendation would be that you give these a pass. Particularly if you've got big ears.
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No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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The Nanoleaf Shapes Mini Triangles elevate the concept of smart lighting into a creative journey of design. A combination of smart technology and sleek ultra-thin design, the modular LED light panels open limitless possibilities for you to explore, create, and play.
Customer Rating
5
I might need to get more of these
on December 12, 2020
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
I've been at least aware of Nanoleaf's products for a while, and while I always thought they were a very cool idea I was never all that inclined to actually try them for myself. Now that I have though, I'm a little surprised that I managed to hold out this long. These things do almost everything I could ask out of a modern lighting system, and they do it with style.
The biggest problem I had when doing my initial assembly was figuring out what kind of shape to build with five triangles. There were a few suggestions on a flyer that came in the box, as well as a shape designer in the app that can construct randomized patterns based on the number and type of panels you have and then use augmented reality to let you preview it in your space, but I quickly came to realize that the more abstract designs that really appealed to me didn't quite work with just five triangles. I can definitely understand why they refer to this as a starter kit. Fortunately, the hardware was very accomodating of my indecisiveness. Everything snaps together like legos, and comes apart just as easily. And when I finally settled on my final design - an admittedly somewhat boring pillar that had the benefit of allowing me to completely hide the one visible wire behind a curtain - installation was a snap. Each panel is held in place with removable adhesive strips specially sized to a rotating circular plate they clip into on the back, so getting them up on the wall is as easy as peeling off the paper backing and holding it in place for 30 seconds. The fact that the clip swivels is particularly appreciated, as it means there's at least a bit of wiggle room if you mess up the orientation of the first panel like I did. The kit also comes with a single spare connecting clip and adhesive panel, just in case you make a mistake that requires a more drastic fix.
Once the lights were finally up and powered, I switched over to the app and was again pleasantly surprised at how well thought out the process of getting it set up was. Pairing the phone with the lights was as simple as tapping it against the controller block to scan the NFC chip, then providing the login credentials for my router. I'll admit that I was a bit worried at first that I might run into trouble here as the directions say that you must have your phone on a 2.4ghz wifi band rather than the faster 5ghz band due to the lights not having 5ghz support. While my router does support both, it uses a single SSID for them which means it's generally up to the phone to decide which band it's connecting on rather than the user. But my fears turned out to be unfounded, as the setup process went off without a hitch even with the combined network. And once I had the app set up, it quickly guided me through the process of getting the system integrated with Google Assistant for voice control, programming in a few basic scenes, and setting up gestures for the touch-sensitive panels. There's definitely still a bit of room for improvement here - I've noticed that the app is less responsive than what I can get with a lot of other smart lighting systems and it does have a habit of occasionally reporting errors which then immediately resolve themselves, but the UI design and overall experience is smooth enough that I'd feel comfortable recommending it even to someone who isn't particularly tech savvy.
Which brings me to actually using the lights. Again, I'm very pleased. The panels offer a very soft and diffuse light which can be adjusted to be bright enough to serve as your primary source of illumination for the room or made more subdued to serve as an accent. The panels are smart enough to work out the shape they've been assembled in on their own, and can use that to adjust the built in and user-created light scenes. There are three basic types of these: static lights which basically just mimic a conventional light fixture, dynamic light shows which transition through a set of colors on a loop, and reactive ones which will change color and intensity in response to any sound the controller picks up. I've mostly been leaving them on the light show mode to avoid them flashing white every time my dog barks at something he sees out the window, but I'm definitely going to be making use of the music visualization settings on my next date night and/or party (assuming, of course, that the pandemic lets me do either of those ever again.) I can only imagine how impressive the effect would be with an even larger array of panels.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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Unleash the power of the Samsung 980 PRO PCIe 4.0 NVMe Gen4 SSD for next-level computing. 980 PRO delivers 2x the data transfer rate of PCIe 3.0, while maintaining compatibility with PCIe 3.0.¹ ¹The NVM Express® design mark is a registered trademark of NVM Express, Inc.* Results are based on a comparison with Samsung PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSDs and SATA SSDs.PS5 compatible with heatsink as recommended by Sony; heatsink sold separately.
Customer Rating
5
Amazingly fast, though not quite plug and play
on December 7, 2020
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
There's no other way to say this - PCIe v4 is ludicrous by design. And Samsung has taken full advantage of that with this drive. This is great if you're after the best performance you can possibly get - but you should be aware that it asks a fair bit in return.
First thing you should be aware of is that the quoted read speeds of 6.4 gb/s are definitely achievable, but only if you have the latest hardware which is capable of taking full advantage of it. This means you need a 10th generation Intel or 5th generation AMD CPU paired with a compatible motherboard that comes with a PCIe 4 controller. Out of curiosity I also stuck it in an older computer that only has PCIe 3 and while it did eventually work, it required that I flash the BIOS before Windows could properly recognize the drive.
And as you'd expect it was also limited to PCIe 3 read and write speeds, which is a little under 4 gb/s. In other words, I wouldn't really recommend this particular drive for anyone but someone looking to build a new system at this time. Eventually PCIe 4 will be ubiquitous, but for now there's not much point in picking up a drive like this for an older laptop or desktop when you can't use it to its full potential.
And as you'd expect it was also limited to PCIe 3 read and write speeds, which is a little under 4 gb/s. In other words, I wouldn't really recommend this particular drive for anyone but someone looking to build a new system at this time. Eventually PCIe 4 will be ubiquitous, but for now there's not much point in picking up a drive like this for an older laptop or desktop when you can't use it to its full potential.
When you do pair it with a modern board though - WOW. I haven't seen a performance jump quite this big since they first introduced high speed NVMe drives a few years back. With this as a boot drive my computer's start-up time is about as close to instantaneous as you can expect with a desktop OS, and it offered fantastic load times for the very large VR games that I stuck on it for testing (Elite Dangerous & Skyrim VR.) It doesn't eliminate load times completely - the games are a bit too large for that and there are other bottlenecks within the SSD that prevent it from being able to maintain its top read speed constantly, but they were more than quick enough to keep me from getting pulled out of the action by the loading screens. What's more because it's a PCIe v4 drive it should also support direct access from the GPU once those features start rolling out in the near future with the latest cards from Nvidia and AMD, so we're likely to see another very enviable performance bump within this unit's lifetime. And since it's Samsung, that's likely to be a very long lifetime compared to some of the alternatives.
Bottom line: if you're after some of the best performance you can get with the new generation of tech, you owe it to yourself to take a look at this drive.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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Dumbbells are made with heavy-duty rubber heads to minimize noise, mitigate typical wear & tear to the equipment and your floor. Rubber hex design prevents the dumbbell from rolling and chrome plated handles are ergonomically fit for any grip or hand type. 35mm diameter handle.
Customer Rating
5
Straightforward workout gear
on December 1, 2020
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
It's hard to think of things to say about a device whose only real requirement is to be both heavy and symmetrical, so I'll be brief: these are very good dumbbells.
The knurled grips provide plenty of purchase for potentially sweaty hands without being obnoxious. The rubber coating does an admirable job of preventing them from creating too much noise when you set them down on the floor. And they did an admirable job of surviving what looks to have been a tremendously challenging trip through the postal service which left the box they arrived in all but destroyed, so I'm sure they'll be able to stand up to anything they might get being stored underneath a desk or in a home gym. There is a bit of a strong chemical smell produced by the rubber that I noticed right out of the box, but it grew fainter with some time.
All in all it's a great set of gear to have on hand for a quick workout!
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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Upgrade your entertainment setup with the Core Innovations 150” Home Theater Projector - White (CPJ600WHBY). With an adjustable screen size between 32”-150”, this projector is perfect for solo gaming marathons or an immersive movie night experience with the entire family. Stream videos, view photos or play your favorite games by linking your preferred device to this projector via numerous versatile connections, including HDMI, VGA, USB, Micro SD and AV.
Customer Rating
2
Bordering on disposable.
on November 23, 2020
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
There are a lot of cheap portable projectors you can find these days for anyone looking to set up a movie night on the go. And many are well made and fully featured devices that offer a surprising amount of utility for the price. This unit is not one of them.
The unit bears all the hallmarks of a product being drop-shipped from some unknown Chinese factory. The unit I got arrived with very large fingerprints all over the lens, requiring me to clean it before I could get acceptable image quality. It rattles whenever you move it, and as far as I can tell this isn't the result of damage so much as the lens mounting and adjustments just being built far too loose to stay in place. And the light from the main lamp leaks out of several places on the casing, most notably the cover for the rear remote which looks to have paint smeared all over the inside of it. The core features are also exaggerated. I was told that I should focus on the adjustable screen size for this review - however I find it hard to justify doing it as it essentially doesn't have that ability. Most projectors offering variable screen size have a zoom wheel or slider that adjusts the focal range of the lens. This does not. You "adjust" the screen size by moving it closer to or further away from your projection surface, which means that if you want a larger screen you're going to end up with a much dimmer image. They claim that you can go up to 150" - based on my testing I'd say anything past 70 or so is probably optimistic unless you've got a pitch black room to work in. Though at the resolution it runs at, I'm not sure you really want to push it much more than that anyway. I also can't say much for the optics you get. It focuses well enough but the keystone correction is atrocious, badly blurring the top and bottom edges of the image if it's applied at all.
If you can look past the issues with the design and construction, the projector's overall performance is about what you'd expect. You've got a built in media player that can read common video and picture formats from a microSD card or thumb drive, a pair of HDMI ports, one VGA port, and an RCA port which will requires a 3.5mm adapter (not included.) They all worked when I tested them, although again the picture quality left a lot to be desired given how much downscaling is being applied.
If there is one defining virtue of this thing to be found, I'd say it's probably in the fact that it's cheap enough that I really wouldn't care what happened to it. This is the kind of thing to use on an outdoor movie night where you might need to deal with rain, or to give to a kid for them to play with. But if you're expecting a genuine bargain, I'd look elsewhere. You get exactly what you pay for here - a projector that's just short of being fully disposable.
Mobile Submission: False
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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Android TV built-in projector for seamless access to content Powered by Google, watch all your favorite streaming channels including Netflix, Hulu, HBO NOW, YouTube and more. Sit back, relax and watch movies with this Epson video projector. It offers 2.700 lumens of color & white brightness to ensure vibrant, accurate colors, and its HD resolution delivers crisp image quality at 1080p. This Epson video projector lets you also connect a Blu-ray player or gaming console via an HDMI input for smooth streaming of your favorite media.
Customer Rating
4
Great picture, fewer cables
on November 22, 2020
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
Epson's latest home theater projector makes an interesting case for why you should pick it up in place of a conventional TV. Anyone who's tried to set up a home theater for themselves can testify that one of the worst parts of the whole ordeal is figuring out how to run wires to the thing in a way that isn't immediately obvious. Epson's answer to this is to stick an Android TV streaming device inside the projector, allowing you to skip all that in favor of WiFi. It's definitely an elegant solution, though I'll admit I feel like there's still some room for improvement to be had.
First up though is everything that's great about the projector. Epson's 3LCD tech continues to deliver sharp and vibrant colors even in less than ideal lighting conditions, though obviously for best results you really should stick to a darkened room. The fans are located behind dust filters and noise baffles which do an exemplary job of keeping noise down to a minimum. And the Android TV streaming device works great, with support for pretty much every major (and most non-major) streaming platform out there. It's also got full support for RF 3D shutter glasses for anyone looking to play 3D movies on the thing, albeit you'll need to buy from a third party if you want to use that feature as Epson no longer manufactures glasses themselves.
The only thing that keeps me from giving it full marks is a lingering sense that it was rushed out the door. To be clear, there's nothing wrong with it, per se, just an abundance of somewhat odd design choices. One of the first ones made itself apparent when I was unboxing it and discovered two very different looking remote controls had been included. My first thought was that this was some kind of shipping error, and that the remote from another device accidentally got packed in the box, but then when I looked at the parts description I saw that they were both supposed to be there. After a little more reading I discovered that one remote is for the projector and the streaming device, while the second is only for the streaming device, with a note that seemed to suggest that you can use it independently of the projector. Maybe I just don't tinker with my home theater setup enough to know why or how one would want to do this, but this seemed like a very odd design choice to me that adds complexity where you don't need it. Why give us two remotes when only one is actually capable of running the full projector? And is there really anyone who's going to be eager to use the carcass of a dead projector as a streaming device if it does break down?
The second bit of weirdness came when I checked out the IO. The back of the projector has a very attractive cloth grille/filter secured with magnets covering up the speaker and the IR remote receiver. It's a very stylish alternative to the usual grid of ports and vents you get at the back of a projector, and I really liked the look of it. However as it turns out, the ports (such as they are) are still back there. And if you want to make any use of them, which presumably you will as I don't think anyone's going to be inclined to stick with the single small speaker built into the projector, you have to remove the grille and keep it off. I can't figure out why they didn't just build the thing with an appropriate pass-through for cables, particularly as they only included support for a standard 3.25mm audio jack and a single HDMI.
To be clear, I don't think these are deal breakers by any means. The core functionality you get with this thing is still rock solid. But this is also positioned as a flagship device - and with a flagship device you usually expect to see a lot more attention being paid to details like this. Hopefully the next iteration of the device can improve on these. But for now, the Home Cinema 2250 would still make a worthy addition to your home setup.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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The Alienware RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard - AW410K - is an allround gaming keyboard that blends function and immersiveness while still offering industry leading components in an iconic design. Incorporating Cherry® MX keys in a floating key architecture with anti-ghosting and on-board memory, this keyboard is designed for responsive, immersive gaming in a compact form factor. Gamers can now enjoy greater precision thanks to industry leading Cherry® MX Brown keys which combine tactile feedback and quiet-click keys with a low actuation force. They can also fully customize their setup and get the most immersive gaming experience with the AlienFX per-key RGB lighting, choosing from approximately 16.8m colors for a fully bespoke gaming experience. Designed for personalization, this gaming keyboard features fully programmable keys for macros and key assignments, while dedicated audio controls allow for quick and accurate adjustments to be made. The Alienware RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard is also ergonomically designed with 3 height adjustment settings for greater comfort.
Customer Rating
4
Premium experience on a budget
on November 10, 2020
Posted by: Batlacit
from Madison, WI
It feels a little odd describing any kind of mechanical keyboard as “mid-range.” Overkill is a concept baked into mechanical gaming keyboards at the most basic level. But after spending some time with the AW410K, it’s the only label I’ve come up with that fits.
To be clear, this should not be taken as a bad thing. Alienware has checked just about every box for what you might be looking for in a premium keyboard with this thing. USB passthrough, programmable per-key lighting, support for on board lighting profiles, Cherry MX switches, media controls, it’s all here. It very much feels like a premium device – it’s just not priced like one. Which makes it a great choice for anyone looking for a slightly more affordable option for their gaming setup.
Build quality overall is good. The frame is primarily plastic, however there’s an aluminum top plate to help add some additional rigidity. I did still note a small amount of deck flex in my testing, but not enough to strike me as a major concern. It has support for three separate angles of elevation with the built in two-stage feet, and while it lacks any kind of wrist rest the frame’s “chin” isn’t large enough to interfere with me adding one of my own. The switches are standard Cherry MX browns, and the keycaps are the usual single-molded translucent plastic with a thick layer of black paint sprayed over top. Connectivity is provided by a VERY thick braided USB cable with two connectors (1 for the keyboard and 1 for a pass-through port on the rear) that looks like you’d need a bolt cutter to get through. And there’s no rattling or shaking I can detect even when I’m banging away on the keys.
Speaking of, the user experience is also good, though there is a bit of room for improvement. The keys are satisfyingly tactile without being completely deafening, it’s plenty responsive for gaming (though admittedly the brown switches are a bit better tuned for typing) and the RGB effects are clearly visible even in a well-lit room. The one weak point is the Alienware Command Center app you need to use to program custom lighting setups. The tools they give you for this are very rudimentary and the interface is not at all intuitive, and I hope that future updates to the tool will address this with a better interface and more complex options to mix the library of pre-defined effects (or at the very least compatibility with other RGB ecosystems.)
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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Add high-end performance to your everyday life with the Google Pixel XL. A quad-core processor, a 5.5-inch LED screen and 32GB of memory ensure this phone is able to handle daily life, and Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protects the screen. Easy cloud storage ensures you never run out of space on the Google Pixel XL.
Does your Best Buy Pixel phone have the Verizon crapware on it?
There are three verizon apps - but all are fully removable. Once they're gone, it's like they were never there to begin with.
7 years, 8 months ago
by
Batlacit
Add high-end performance to your everyday life with the Google Pixel XL. A quad-core processor, a 5.5-inch LED screen and 32GB of memory ensure this phone is able to handle daily life, and Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protects the screen. Easy cloud storage ensures you never run out of space on the Google Pixel XL.
Does this version of the phone have a locked bootloader?
Yes, the Verizon branded Pixel does come with a locked bootloader. Only ones bought directly from Google don't.
7 years, 8 months ago
by
Batlacit
Add high-end performance to your everyday life with the Google Pixel XL. A quad-core processor, a 5.5-inch LED screen and 32GB of memory ensure this phone is able to handle daily life, and Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protects the screen. Easy cloud storage ensures you never run out of space on the Google Pixel XL.
Is this water resistant?
I'm afraid not. But you may be able to find case options that can at least improve that.
7 years, 8 months ago
by
Batlacit
Orbi Whole Home WiFi System delivers up to 3.0Gbps high-performance WiFi. Sleek, modern design with high-gain internal antennas for up to 5,000 square feet of coverage. FastLane3 Technology creates a dedicated Tri-Band WiFi for seamless 4K streaming and gaming everywhere in your home. Keep a single WiFi name for uninterrupted connections as you move from room-to-room. Circle Smart Parental Controls runs on Orbi Routers for a smart way for families to manage content and time online, on any connected device. Provide internet access to guests without sharing your personal network password. Orbi is ready right out of the box and compatible with your ISP. Just use the Orbi app to get started with better WiFi, everywhere in minutes.
do you have to have an internet service before this will bring in the wi fi
You can use it to set up a local network, but if your goal is to watch netflix or look stuff up on google, yes, you need to have internet service.
7 years, 9 months ago
by
Batlacit
Orbi Whole Home WiFi System delivers up to 3.0Gbps high-performance WiFi. Sleek, modern design with high-gain internal antennas for up to 5,000 square feet of coverage. FastLane3 Technology creates a dedicated Tri-Band WiFi for seamless 4K streaming and gaming everywhere in your home. Keep a single WiFi name for uninterrupted connections as you move from room-to-room. Circle Smart Parental Controls runs on Orbi Routers for a smart way for families to manage content and time online, on any connected device. Provide internet access to guests without sharing your personal network password. Orbi is ready right out of the box and compatible with your ISP. Just use the Orbi app to get started with better WiFi, everywhere in minutes.
Q I am looking for1 Orbi router and 3 Orbi satellites for my big home, since Netgear is not giving the option to buy satellites individually ,will I be able to order two boxes of Orbi and be able to use one of Orbi router as a satellite ,? interchange
From what I can tell, no, you can't get the same seamless integration with two routers in the system. The satellite and router look mostly identical, but there are some differences. You might be able to configure the second one as an access point... but that might defeat the point a bit.
That said, they've stated they are going to release individual satellites eventually.
That said, they've stated they are going to release individual satellites eventually.
7 years, 9 months ago
by
Batlacit