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December 16 Replacing Batteries in a Panasonic Wet/Dry Shaver
I really like using my Panasonic shaver in the shower with lather and water (you might call it an addiction). Its the most comfortable shave I've had as it allows me to cover trouble spots repeatedly without discomfort. The things are also expensive, so I was more than a little upset when my nice shaver stopped working in the charger a few months after its one year anniversary (and one year warranty). Panasonic recommended me to the folks that handle their repairs, www.smallappliance.com. Those folks wanted $100 to repair the shaver. Shees. I searched for batteries for the thing but its not exactly something they expected users to do themselves. My first attempt was to buy a cheapie Panasonic and pillage its batteries. This worked for a few weeks and the thing just could not keep a charge. Note that was a pretty dumb thing to do anyway. I just gave up the Frankenstein strategy and bought their travel wet/dry shaver which uses regular camera batteries. Its a nice shaver, but my nice one is going unused. I noticed last month that Panasonic batteries for their shavers are now being sold (part number WES8093L2509). This battery set works in the following models: ES8096 ES8095NC ES8092NC ES8092 ES8095 ES8097. You will be set back $22 plus shipping, but it is doable for a novice to perform the procedure. I bought one and decided to document the steps to do this since there really aren't any tutorials on it. So to that end, if you see something I am doing wrong or is confusingly documented, please feel free to post a comment to that effect and Ill correct it.
Tools NeededYou are going to need a solder pick, a small Phillips screwdriver, and some needle-nose pliers. Don't skimp on the pick, its key to making this painless. And of course, the new batteries....
DisassemblyYou are about to disassemble a water-proof device, so there are some rubber seals that create tight fits between parts. These parts can be difficult to separate even when screws have been removed, so have some patience when proceeding with these instructions. First, remove the blades from your shaver. Next, turn your shaver over and locate the small rubber caps at the bottom. Insert your pick's needle down the hole on one of the caps and lift it up and out (repeat for the other cap). This exposes the two screws at the bottom. Use the screwdriver to remove the two screws.
A note on removing the screws: Each screw has a rubber washer on it. These washers can remain down in the channel or on the screw itself. Make sure when you re-assemble your unit that each screw has its seal:
Next, ensure the shaver is in its locked position, and extend the trimmer to expose a third screw.
Remove the screw, and then use your pick to delicately separate the silver plastic piece the third screw was holding.
This exposes the final four screws: two at the top and two to either side of the center screw we just removed. Keep track of them as they are different sizes. Next, place your shaver face-down and use your pick to assist in separating the two sides of the casing. You want to be very careful here as there are delicate guts you don't want to disturb (but if you do I have a section for getting it back together). Remember the seals don't want to separate so using the pick in an inconspicuous spot as shown below is sometimes your only option.
I told you that pick would come in handy :) If it did not separate cleanly as shown and the white pieces have sprung out, don't worry we will get to that during re-assembly.
Swapping the BatteriesThe existing batteries will not come out easily. Here, you can use your pick or the pliers to gently escort them out. Then, pull the rubber piece you find them attached to at the shaver top (you are given a new one in the bag with the new batteries). Next, add the new rubber top piece and then gently insert the new batteries:
Strange batteries, but they aren't meant to be user-friendly.
Re-assembly of Two HalvesThis can be tough, and is where patience is required. The trick is to put the two halves of the casing back together in such a way that the floating head mechanisms align themselves. I have done this several times to get one shaver closed properly. You will know immediately when you have it right: The three positions of your shaver will give you definitive clicks and the shaver floats up and down easily when not locked. Technique 1I have constructed a technique that works for me and I hope it works for you as well. You have two halves of the shaver, one with the motor and one that is empty. Face the empty one on its back and use your pliers to remove the center white piece from the motor-equipped half and insert it as shown below on the empty half. Note that the locking switch shown in the photo will be in the center position, and a small plastic knob fits in the center of the white plastic piece.
You will want to hold this shaver half over the motor-equipped one and keep one finger on the locking mechanism to prevent it from moving until the two halves are mated. I think it is easier to connect the top half of the shaver together then hinge the bottom. You will want to gently push your shaver head. If you do not get a good fit you will have to try again. This may involve re-seating the white spring pieces. If you have to reseat the two spring pieces, note the small inset marked by the orange rectangle in the photo below. You want to click each spring box into its groove. This holds them into place while you try to reset the top half. The second picture shows the spring box snapped into the small recess.
Technique 2Ok so that didn't work well for you. This one involves the reverse: You will assemble the empty half with the floating head parts, then lower the motor-equipped half onto it from above. Below is a photo of how assembly of the lighter half should look:
Note the locking switch is on the easy setting on one and the middle on the other. Try both, though I think the easy setting seems to work more. Lower the motor half onto this half and delicately push the razor head in a little so the mechanisms align. You may have to repeat this a few times.
WrapupI've re-assembled the shavers using both approaches, so don't worry you will eventually get it. Insert the two screws of the top left and right areas to secure your working assembly (don't forget to remember to make sure that each screw has a seal). Then insert the two screws just below those and test the head and locking mechanisms. They should float freely on "easy" and be unmovable on "lock". Assuming the assembly is still good, sit it in your charger to see that the batteries are functioning. It may take a few seconds to see the charge indicator. Next, reapply the silver centerpiece and secure it with the one small center screw. And finally, secure the bottom two screws and re-insert the rubber caps. Congratulations, you have repaired your precious wet shaver for $22. If this helped, please let me know.
Best regards, March 26 Impressions: Gateway Core Duo NX560 / M465 LaptopI received a loaded Gateway small business laptop (NX560/M465) and these are my initial impressions.
What I actually ordered was an S-7510N, however Gateway sent an M465 and put a sticker on it that said S-7510N. The difference? Quite a bit in the quality fit and finish department: Magnesium-alloy interior skeleton, and better keypad w/ EZ-point (that’s what Gateway calls the pointing stick in the middle of the keyboard).
They claim this was an accident but I can’t say I share this belief. S-7510Ns were their equivalent to the Dell Lattitude and they have been phased out for exact copies of their notorious consumer line but with a longer warrantee. In this case, the M465 is identical to the NX560. In my opinion, Gateway is knowingly saving money by cheating newer S-7510N orders at the end of that laptop’s lifeline by substituting them for M465s.
The key configurable items are as follows:
Laptop Frame: The laptop itself is attractive, and offers a more Spartan layout that avoids the Dell “put VCR buttons everywhere” approach. Unfortunately with the removal of the magnesium alloy infrastructure, the entire body is plastic and easily warps and twists. This is more a Sam’s club bargain special than a high end laptop. The quality is almost criminally bad.
To further worsen my feelings about the laptop, the hard drive is directly under where your right palm rests and it gets quite hot. Not just warm, but hot. Within minutes of starting the laptop and just using Microsoft Word, your hand will be uncomfortable. I am not sure if this is a 7200 RPM thing, but I talked to Gateway about it and all they would say is that their laptops “run warm”. I read this as “runs hot”. Apple on the other hand did the right thing incidentally: their heat is in the upper left area of the laptop, away from your palms.
The Screen: While there are no dead pixels, this screen is highly reflective. Unless you are in a controlled dark room, you will see all light sources behind you. I mean, you could groom yourself with this mirror. Very strange, why not an anti-glare coating or something?
Then, to compound the visibility problem, the display is washed out, as if there is no contrast and things are oversaturated. Ever turn brightness up too high and turn contrast way down? Like that. Blacks are essentially grays as light bleeds through what are supposed to be “off” pixels. The high reflection also causes black areas to be brighter than normal.
You can control brightness through the keypad: about 8 gradations of brightness. Unfortunately even playing with the brightness control the saturation problem persists. This is absolutely the worst display I have ever seen. My 7” cheap-as-hell DVD player blew the Gateway away. I have to flag this machine as unacceptable from the screen quality alone.
The Keyboard/Layout: Their keyboard looks like a lowest bidder option. And of course, going in I knew there were no fancy backlights or anything, but the keypad is a little too bendy/squishy with little support from underneath. It is stiffer than the rest of the laptop though, so they did reinforce it somewhat.
Curiously, you cannot disable the track pad very easily. You must disable the driver! So if you are worried about your thumbs brushing the pad as I occasionally do, there is no quick keyboard shortcut to turn it off/on. One good thing about their track pad is that the track pad has a separate “scroll wheel” area, which I have always liked.
There is supposedly audio control from the keyboard but it does not work. Gateway tech support just mentioned that may or may not work, they just reuse the same keypads for several configurations.
Software: One good bit of news is that their Complete Security pack is actually very nice. For $40 you get full versions of four very popular products. Spy Sweeper, Window Washer, Recover Pro, and Personal Data Vault. The packaging is also very nice: hard shell plastic ring-binder book with CD sleeves for pages.
Performance: I never got around to installing any performance software but the thing does scream. This is a fast laptop.
Conclusion: Needless to say, I wanted to return the laptop. This machine is awful, and is the same platform for all of Gateway’s laptops.
My return adventure thus began.
Their shipment was several months late due to core duo availability, which everyone knows. However the 30 day return policy goes into effect when you ORDER the laptop, not when it arrives. I had to provide tracking numbers to prove I only had the laptop for a few days. Once that was established I was ok. Unfortunately there is a restocking fee, which includes a percentage of the full cost of the laptop and that included my additional warrantee. What does gateway have to do to restock an extended warrantee?
First, they tried to talk me out of the return by offering to replace the M485 with an actual S-7410N. However if I did that I would not be able to return the S-7410N (according to the person on the phone). So why risk that? Not a chance in hell. Anyway, the laptop is now on its way FedEx back to them. My first machine from eons ago was a Gateway and I looked forward to this laptop, but they aren’t even trying.
Do not get a gateway. Period.
February 10 Review: Weaknees TIVO HD Upgrade KitWeaknees Tivo Upgrade kits:
As I was off to work one morning I glanced at the TV and noticed the Tivo was stuck on the "Welcome to TIVO..." screen. At first I thought "Oh, must have gotten a software update overnight and its restarting". But after about 10 minutes I soon faced the truth: something was very wrong. Then I realized another thing... this was the Tivo I had ponied up the dough for the lifetime subscription (maybe thats transferablle but it was another worry).
I tried cycling the power to no avail, and visions of calling Pioneer's tech support sent pricklies up my spine. When I first bought it, it tended to lock up (freeze) occasionally. Since it was a few months out from the full coverage warrantee, I had to pay shipping to send it to California. When it came back, all they had done was use the Tivo menu to select "reset" (which resets the tivo). Well thanks, Pioneer, I could have done that myself.
So I thought I would gamble and look into other choices. Turns out Tivo upgrade kits have the Tivo software already on them, prepped and ready. Your subscription (lifetime or otherwise) is even preserved in the process. All you do is yank the old one out and shove the new on in and you are ready to go. The question was, is the HD the problem?
At this point I took the Tivo out of the cabinet and listened very closely to its startup. I did in fact hear the harddrive tick off a few noises, which is important: When the Tivo is in this state you either have a bad (or corrupt) HD, or your power supply may be going south. Confirming that the HD was getting satisfactory juice I thought this would be a good time to upgrade from 80Hrs to a higher amount. Maybe a dying Tivo can be a good thing :)
The positive vibes started the moment I visited the weaknees site. The first thing you do on their site is select your Tivo model, which restricts you to exactly those kits they know will work. Some Tivos can hold two harddrives for example, while others (notably DVD/Tivo combos) cannot. My Tivo that failed was the Pioneer 810H. I was shocked at the storage capability of some of these HDs out there. I was able to get a 250Gig drive for $200. Hell, sounds good to me. Better to keep milking that lifetime subscription.
Once the kit arrived, I noticed it had personalized installation instructions for my particular model. All the photos were of a Pioneer 810H. While for myself this was unnecessary, this is very classy. I can see non-techies having no problem following these instructions. All the guts were labled on the photos (such as: this is the DVD player, this is the HD, etc). Very nice touch indeed.
Swapping the harddrive out literally took just 30 minutes. I couldn't believe how smooth it was. Then the moment I feared..... booting it up. First there was the "Welcome to tivo...." then a very long 10 seconds and the next Tivo boot screen came up, then the initial animation. Whew, Im back in business.
Then, more good news. Weaknees had equipped the HD with very recent Tivo software. It was only missing that small upgrade to allow for overlap protection. One quick connection to Tivo service and my lifetime subscriptiion information appeared. Lovely.
Of course, you lose all your settings but hey, 250Gigs? Thats a lot of Battlestar Galactia.
I highly recommend you take this route if your HD becomes suspect or you want more space. Weaknees has shown it cares about its image and customers and clearly knows what its doing.
One word of caution however: Technically, opening your Tivo voids the lifetime subscription (and your manufacturer's waranty if its still good). Tivo is community sensitive and looks the other way however, so no worries on my end. In my opinion, their language regarding modification of Tivos is really intended to give them some legal teeth for hackers stealing the service.
-d February 09 Adaptive eyeglasses to bring "super vision" for those with presbyopiaPixeloptics, a small Virginia R&D firm, have created adaptive ("electro-active") eyeglasses they say will bring amazing results to those with presbyopia.
Company link
Dailytech article
Quote:
PixelOptics uses electronically controlled pixels that are embedded inside of traditional eyeglass lens to bend and manipulate light as it enters the lens.. After the software makes some adjustments, the pixel will then be programmed to fix any problems that a person may have. February 05 Review: Atari Paddle TV Game set (2 player)Jakks Atari Paddle:
This games-in-a-joystick craze is interesting, especially for those of us with some history playing the console of consoles, the Atari 2600. I especially liked the Atari paddles, and when JAKKS came out with the two-paddle game set I had to bite. After all, there is nothing like the Atari paddle out there. Clean analog left-right input, easy to use, and built to last. The games created using Atari paddle sets have lived on as have their creators. Jobs and Wozniak (ok, mostly Wozniak but Jobs designed it) created the original breakout. Bushnell created Pong and went on to combine pizzas and arcades.
Overview
============== The system comes with 13 games housed in a larger paddle, with the second paddle hanging off of it. The second paddle looks like it came from the exact mold of the original set. The larger one, other than its elongated house and heavier feel from the batteries, "feels" like the original did. The video cable runs about 8 feet so you don't have to sit right up on the TV to play, and there are a few switches on the main paddle controller to reset the system to its game selection menu. The menu system input uses the paddle, where you twist to highlight the game you wish to play and press the button. Once in the game sub-menu, things go downhill fast. Remember having to use the game select lever a hundred times to finally get the game variation you want? Well they chose to replicate that frustration for some ungodly reason. You twist the paddle to highlight what you want to do (ie: return to main menu, select left difficutly, right difficulty, select game mode, play game). Then, once highlighted, you use the button for everything else. So to wade though a game's variations you have to sit there and press the fire button 25 times! I dunno, King Stupid comes to mind. They do have an interesting synopsis of the game's variations on the submenu screen, which can be read with some difficulty. Why they didn't just let you scroll through the numbers is beyond me. Absolutely insane design choice.
So we can overlook the submenu debacle, right? Lets talk about the games. What games did in fact use or work with the paddles?
Bachelor Party
(* = included in game set)
We can eliminate a good list of those as super-crappy, but there are some that are mandatoy paddle play and Im proud to say that the only one missing is Kaboom! And all of them support one or two players. You may notice only 11 games are included, yet Jakks advertises 13. They have added a Pong clone from the original Atari Pong system, and a new version of Warlords, dubbed "Arcade Warlords".
Pong
================== The all-time classis is included, but not the 2600 Pong Sports flavor. It reminds me more of that first Atari hardware Pong game that had the little metal up/down analog joysticks. Also its backwards. Turning right makes your paddle go up. Not a good game, no real difficulty settings to speak of, and the score overlaps the play area. Avoid. With Video Olympics (the Pong most of us remember), not sure why this is here. Video Olympics
================== The best paddle game on record is Video Olympics, and they have the key variations included: Pong ("Tennis"), Soccer, Hockey, Foosball, Handball, Volleyball, Basketball, Raquetball. These games are very fun two player. They really should have made the submenus easier to obtain these classic and diverse variations. The fact that they came up with so many good variations of pong is itself an accomplishment in design. Voleyball is a classic!
Night Driver
================== This is one I owned as a kid. Its graphics demonstrated the weakness of the system (whereas Pong worked fine). You know the story: stay on the road and avoid the oncoming traffic. What made this one unique was the attempt at the 3D perspective to mimic the classic Atari vector arcade game of the same name. Not a good game, but a nostalgic choice.
Casino
================== In casino, you use the paddles to spin through card choices. Its actually good. Street Racer
================== One of the great classics, and the variations are all here. Its the simple 2d top-down stay on the road and don't hit anything variety, but with paddles the interface is superb. The variations are a lot of fun and almost look like entirely different games (such as video olympics). Canyon Bomber
================== Push button, drop bomb, destroy the most stuff. Not my cup of tea. Breakout
Super Breakout ================== Ah, now we are talking. The great one. Why they included both the original and the upgraded version? Im not sure but they are a little different. Breakout even has a children's mode added by Jakks that is slower and allows them to get the cooridination for the game down. Warlords
Arcade Warlords ================== Apart from Pong and breakout, warlords is the other classic that just hasn't been replicated by today's games. Warlords was 1-4 players and this set has one or two, with the computer controlling the unused characters. Its basically four-player breakout elimination where each play owns a corner of the screen with his/her king protected by a shield of bricks. Opponents will send the ball your way in an attempt to knock out your bricks to get the ball to your king (and thus knock you out of the game). Play continues until there is one person left. Arcade Warlords is a new addition that has upgraded graphics and more action. Its a lot of fun. The original warlords also has a childrens mode added with slow ball movement again so young players can learn and enjoy the game.
Circus Atari ================== Always thought of as a breakout copy, but with a few fun wrinkles. I've always liked it, but it was never a substitute for the original. Steeple Chase
================== One of those games that reminds me of Canyon Bomber. Press the button to make your horse jump. Again not my cup of tea, and probably noone elses. Demons to Diamonds
================== A strange combination of arcade action and the paddle, I never liked this game but some people loved it. You move your space ship at the bottom, firing onto aliens and diamonds. Its an effective use of the paddle as you quickly spin left or right. Think breakout meeds space invaders. Conclusion
================== This is a sure-fire hit for nostalgic gaming as well as young children. My 5 year old loves to play me in paddle basketball and warlords. The graphics are easy to identify, the games are easy to learn, and the construction is top notch. Of all the atari games in a box this set stands alone as the most unique. I have the flashback console and the original joystick-set from Jakks (both will be reviewed over the next week). This is the one you want to get.
February 03 Review: Dell 964 All-in-one printerDell link:
Price: $199
I gambled a bit and bought two of Dell's latest All-in-one, the 964 before anyone else reviewed it. Actually I think this is the first review. One of these went to my parents for Christmas, and one for my wife who had an old scanner and crappy printer and constantly gave me faxes to send from work (or I had to receive personal faxes at work, stuff like tax information, medical info, insurance info, the usual). These days, a fax machine is so nice to have.
Overview ========== The design of the printer sounds ideal: Fax and photo copy without the use of your computer. The document feeder supports multiple pages just like at work. Slap a stack of documents on the top, dial a fax number, hit send and walk away. Or hit copy for that matter. It also acts as a pictbridge, showing photos on a small 2" LCD screen. You can view and edit photos, printing them as you see fit. I personally don't care for this feature but it seems important to others. What I find intriguing about the pictbridge is it acts as a USB harddrive to the PC. Just slap your camera card or any USB thumb drive and it pops up on the computer. There is a slight delay though as the printer scans the drive/card for any pictures to present to you on the screen.
So now that I've described what drew me to the printer, lets first describe the overall printer, then go over a complete list of the key features wth some comments.
The printer is compact and easily fits it roughly the same footprint as the scanner it replaces. Remove your old printer and you suddenly have a world of extra space :)
The fit and finish looks good, but is not a rugged machine for heavy use. The bridge that contains the screen and number pad sticks out on its own and bends and bows as you press on buttons. Its not as bad as that sounds, but this printer will not stand up to very heavy office use.
The screen is nice, and the menu system is straightforward. My mom was able to use it right away, and she is the type that can't operate a light switch.
The ink system is obviously tied to dell, and you have two color ink choices: Photo and Standard. Use the standard, which actually does fine for photos as well. Standard inks are cheaper and (if memory serves) you get more black for common use printing. This is seen as a disadvantage to those photo enthusiasts as to get high quality results you have to open up and swap ink cartridges.
Fax
========== The fax is completely stand-alone, and also as a new printer called Dell 964 fax. If using the computer, print to that printer and a window will pop up requesting some fax details such as the phone number. For receiving faxes you can either have it auto-detect, or (in my case) simply leave receive off all together. What it will do in that case is beep when it detects a ring, and allow you to use the on-screen menu to pick up the call and check for a fax. That is good enough for us. When sending, You can fax a single page by lifting up the top lid and placing the page flat, or multiple pages by using the automatic document feeder, which Dell claims will hold 50 pages. I have experienced jams in the ADF, but overall its very nice.
When you do get a paper jam, it works just like those high-end printers where graphics on the display step you through the doors you must open to retrieve the page.
Photocopy
========== Just like the fax feature, you can use the automatic document feeder (or lift up the top shelf and place a single page on it). It works just like you would think: Throw the pages you want copied on it and hit the copy button. You can use the menu to select the usual assortment of copy preferences such as number of copies. I photocopied a photo just by throwing it on the scanner bed and hitting the copy button, and damn if it didn't do a very good job. The resulting copy was slightly darker, but still very nice. And no computer involved!
Scanner
========== The scanner and photocopy are obviously closely related. It works just as you expect. The Dell software allows you to attach the application of your choice for "receiving" the scan. I recommend Google's Picasa2. You cannot scan full duplex (scan both sides of a page).
Printer ========== As a printer, there is only one flaw that irks me with this and that is you can't do full duplex printing (print on both sides). This saves a lot of paper, and was the one advantage the more expensive HPs have over the Dell. I really hesitated over this, but the price and usability of the system won me over. Software
========== Ignore that freebie paint and organizer stuff comes with printers these days. Just get and stick with Picasa2. Also I would like to add that ALL printer driver software really stinks. Why cant a printer manufacturer create very low-key and easy to use software? Dell is no exception to this problem: Its default settings have popups whenever you print (which you can turn off), and its menu system is awkward and does not fit in with the Windows XP feel. I guess you could say the Dell XP software is functional but flakey. Support ========== Lets say it: Dell online chat support sucks. I had one problem with my Dell. Being an early adopter, I had to download and install a firmware upgrade for the printer. Running this firmware updater on my PC timed out trying to tdo its thing. Genius boy on my support chat insisted the problem was the Dell website. Wha? The Dell website was stopping my flash update program? That isn't stupid, itslike king stupid. It took me four explanations until he finally understood what a firmware upgrade was, then he insisted he call me. Ok fine, I give him my number. I then get a heavy Indian accent (it didn't help that he spoke amazingly fast), and an insistance that the problem was the software and to call a number to talk to the software group. Well, so I call the software group and they ask for a credit card. Huh? I have to pay for this? So I call the printer group tech support (as opposed to the online chat) and got someone I could understand. He said its the USB network, don't have any other device plugged in. Not sure if this was a firmware updater app bug, but the suggestion worked.
Moral of the story: Avoid the online chat service, its complete crap.
Moral 2 of the story: If you have problems running a Dell printer firmware update, remove all USB devices from your PC except the printer and try again.
Conclusion ========== This printer is an absolute winner. I assure you you will love it. No it wont hold up to heavy office work, but for home use it is easy to use and gives great results. The main drawbacks are: No duplex printing, weak construction, swap inks for advanced photo printing vs traditioncal color prints.
The main selling points are: Automatic document feeder (50 pages), computer-free fax and photocopy. USB/Pictbridge feature that integrates into the color LCD menu for picture preview and editing (something Ill never use), and very easy to use.
February 02 Asteroids & Pong using kids programming language?Jon Schwartz has an article up on MSDN detailing an Asteroids clone written using a learner Basic language called KPL (Kids Programming Language):
He also has a Pong article:
And intends on doing Missile Command next!
Here is an overview of KPL:
Apparently KPL is the offspring of that Atari Basic Programming cartridge for the 2600. Believe it or not I owned that and enthusiastically programmed the big red square to move around and beep and was DAMN PROUD OF IT.
Comming soon: reviews of the Atari Paddle 2-player game kit and the Atari flashback game kit. The paddle games are fun as hell, and the flashback console has some "new" unreleased cartridges. Will publish these reviews over the weekend.
-d February 01 Gateway Core Duo Laptop (S-7510N)Just bought a smokin S-7510N laptop from Gateway (its similar to NX560):
The price was just around 2.5K, of which the full warantee is significant. Did you know you can chat with a sales rep and they can do a bit of price negotiating? And no bitching about the warantee. I have a wife that could break paper by dropping it, and two kids under 5. Believe me, I need it. Otherwise, I wouldn't touch the Accidental Replacement thing, you put your hands in interpretation of the agreement and can't test the waters until you really need them to honor it.
This will become the primary machine. I targeted Gateway for its real port replicator, core duo, and the ability to configure for fast memory and fast hd. I wanted an alienware but can't justify it without the port replicator, and we can't wait forever for them to announce core duos. My old machine is a 700 MHz Pentium III, so this thing shoudl absolutely rocket.
I realize I could have done better on the discrete graphics, but we will only really exersize it with Vista Aero Glass. 256 MB would likely be wasted and take battery life. I probably could have gone with the Intel solution but am not convinced it even has enough power to do Vista yet, and besides I use the xbox 360 for gaming pretty much exclusively.
The thing will probably get to me mid March if Im lucky. The faster memory and core duo chipset are (obviously) backed up no matter where you order. I will post a review as soon as I get it.
Update
Gateway admited the mistake on the 3 yr vs 4 yr warantee and have said they will correct it. It has yet to appear correct on my order status however. Also, I believe the total savings difference between the online order form and using their sales person is just over $300. Basically they threw in one year full warantee with Accidental Replacement, the security suite package, and shipping.
Update 2
The 4 yr warantee now shows up correctly. My case and Gateway security suite have already arrived. The security suite acutally appears to be a very good deal, given the cost of SpySweeper at Best Buy alone. Ill post a small review of it later. The laptop itself has an estimated arrival time of 3/14, however Im told this is a conservative date. Its possible I will receive it in Feb. So come on Intel, crank out those chips.
I've been asked why not Apple. Ill post an entry on that soon.
Update 3
It has arrived! Ill post my impressions this weekend.
-d January 29 Hiding the XBOX 360What a fantastic product this is! Unfortunately its loud. In a previous entry I discussed hiding a Tivo deep inside an entertainment cabinet where its lights and on-going harddrive noise are never seen or heard, by using an infrared network to route the remote control signals:
Well, the kit came with multiple IR ports, so I extended it by attaching an IR cable from the 360 IR port to the IR box in the cabinet. Now, given that the amazing 360 controller is wireless (You don't think I bought the cheap 360 did you? :) ) I have a controller, a tivo remote, and a 360 remote by the night stand and can completely control my system with nothing but the TV exposed.
One thing I ran into was the heat generated by the 360. At first, I sat it on the Tivo, but it got the Tivo so hot the Tivo overheated and held itself in reset. Touching the Tivo was like touching the damn stovetop. Ok, time to rethink. I ended up standing the 360 vertical, and drilling some air holes through the back of the cabinet for more air flow. I even got some PC fans from radio shack and mounted them into the back of the entertainment center and tapped the 12 volts power from the IR equipment, which worked well but the fans in this setup will always be on and weren't quiet enough at night so I unhooked them. One day Ill attach a temperature senser to them and hook them back up, because that worked very well!
Below is the shelf system inside the furniture. I drilled holes above the xbox and out the back of both the Tivo and Xbox areas. This proved to be enough for not needing any fans.
[TIVO]
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Need for Speed: Most Wanted hints and tipsWow, what a great game this is on the 360. The graphics are amazing. Not the best graphically of the launch games, but far better than any other NFS:MW variety out there and IMHO the best launch game period. The game plays butter-smooth, and is well polished.
Anyway, I've played the thing to death and am at blacklist #5. The one thing I have a problem with are the chase pursuits and bounty. Its clear around blacklist 8 or so that bounty is going to be a big thing. For the life of me I could not rack up big chases and avoid the police. I finally had developed a few techniques to help me deal with the big chases and thought Id jot them down:
1) Stay on wide highways, continue to do u-turns if you can to stay on the widest sections of highway. The police have trouble surprising you with roadblocks due to the many lanes, and are spread very thin. Because you can see the roadblocks from a distance and they are always pretty much just one layer of cars, you can inspect from a distance for road spikes.
2) Once you have developed the milestones or bounty needed, you need to escape. Open your map and select a pursuit breaker. The GPS arrow will lead you to that breaker, but WILL TAKE YOU THROUGH VERY NEAT BREAKERS ON THE WAY! This was the key for me, using the GPS tracker. It guided me through alleys, gas stations, etc. all on the way to my final GPS destinaion. I was able to shake off the police pretty easily each time. Just pick a far-away pursuit breaker, and if you finally arrive at it without success shaking the police, just pick another far away one and repeat the process.
3) There are a few places where you can end up on a roof. Stay there! Even though the Helecopter will hover over you, no police car will volunteer to drive off a jump (unless he is in the heat of the chase with you). The helecopter will eventually fly off for refuelling and the chase will end.
4) If you are surprised by a roadblock, ALWAYS go for either the car, or between two cars if they are close together. NEVER go for a wide gap with no cars present. Thats usually a sign of tire spikes. Save your boost for these moments, to power through the car.
5) Those pesky Rhino uavs want to ram down your throat. Play chicken with them, then turn sharp at the last moment. They may manage to hit your back end and spin you around, thats ok go with the momentum and complete the u-turn. Forget trying to push the rhino. If you are stuck, try reversing.
6) If you loose the police on the highway and need more chase time, turn around and floor it. Odds are you will be done with the chase but there is a chance you can be spotted again. Isnt that strange? Never a cop when you need one :) I usually drive slow to keep at least one cop on me until a helecopter is on scene. This allows me to stretch the chase out and work on those milestones and bounty.
Well, thats all for now
-d January 28 the iHome iH5 clock radio for the iPodiHome iH5 clock radio: www.ihomeaudio.com
$100.00
I don't spend much time in front of a computer at home, so my iPod sits connected to a charger by my nightstand as opposed to sitting by the PC. Wouldn't it be neat to get something out of that? An alarm clock radio that charges and makes use of the iPod is a great way to incorporate the iPod into my home and life, and away from the damn office/PC.
Well, the iHome iH5 looked to me to be one of the best choices. Its very attractive, feature-laden, and supports all the iPods. It also features some decent speakers and both audio-in and audio-out lines, so you could incorporate it into your stereo system, so its quite the cat's meow of clock radios.
The iH5 has you snap the iPod at the top, and you use two discs on either side for adjustments of volumn, or FM tuning, etc. There are also a suite of buttons on the top for basic settings, snooze, etc. It comes with a variety of base snap-ins you select based on your iPod, but be warned, there is no room for an iPod within a protective skin. You will likely want to get an iPod skin that completely opens up at the bottom to allow for full docking. One day, someone will manufacture a base extension cable so we don't have to physically stand the iPod into these things, which would mean undressing and redressing them in those cases.
The clock display has three dim settings, all of which are very bright. Be warned, the entire room will be a bright blue at night. I had to cut some semi-transparent plastic and tape it on the display in order to sleep. This did not bode well for me, it seems like the iHome folks never really thought about how the product would be used. More on this later, back to the clock. It does have one redeeming feature: A +/- 1 hour switch so you can adjust for daylight savings time with a flip of a switch. I also like that it shows the month/day. You can also easily read the clock in the daylight, not that that helps me with my quest for sleep.
The alarm feature sounded great on the box: You can choose from a variety of audio sources such as radio, buzzer, ipod, and line-in. It even gradually ramps the volume up from zero to softly start the music over a period of a few seconds. If you select the iPod as the music source, it invokes the iPod play command, which has the device continue on whatever playlist/song it was doing last.
This is great, I thought. But hold on, remember my comment earlier about iHome seemingly not really paying attention? As strange as it may sound, you CANNOT SET THE VOLUME OF THE ALARM! While it does its soft-ramping trick on the iPod song it continues up to a volume setting of 20 (which is extremely loud). You CANNOT change this. Want to wake up everyone in the house and have a heart attack? Hey, get this thing. Ironic that the speakers are such high quality.
Thinking this was a bug or defect I called iHome and was told that unfortunately this is how it worked. They suggested I use the buzzer (why have an ipod then?) or use iTunes to configure the play volume of the song(s) to play. Why should I go through the hastle of changing my iPod music for the damn iH5? All they had to do was let me SET THE VOLUME I WANT.
Man am I upset. So to the return lines I go.
I advise two things:
1) Do not purchase this product (obviously)
2) Question any iHome product. If they are this off the mark, what the hell are they doing?
-d January 21 Tivo/DVR HD too loud? Try this IR router trick.Recently I complained in my HUMAX TIVO review of its insanely loud HD, even when the damn thing wasn't doing anything (standby even). The problem was worsened by its location: the bedroom. Nothing like trying to sleep when the TIVO felt like clearing its throat. There is a solution, however. Actually, you have two really good ones available, neither of which require you do anything to your TIVO. Option 1: A wireless IR receiver/transmitter kit The idea is you have an IR receiver out in the open and your TIVO buried down in your entertainment center cabinetry behind closed doors where its nice and quiet. If you have a home network or wireless phones, you may want to avoid the wireless solution. http://www.weaknees.com has a great wireless solution if you don't mind the batteries in your remote draining a little faster than 2x the normal rate. And RadioShack has a different styled wireless solution it carries in stores. If I were to get a wireless one I would be very tempted for the weaknees one because of the aesthetics (you don't see the transmitter, which takes up one of the battery slots in your remote!). Wireless is also almost half the cost of the fancy hardwired kits (though www.smarthome.com carries a good affordable one). To go clean both for the sake of my 2.4 spectrum and aesthetics, I went the hardwired route. After some research I selected speakercraft's hardwired IR kit. It is also compatible with the IR blaster cable that came with your TIVO if you want to save some $. Below are the parts you need: SmartPath AT-1.0 (the heart of the kit that all wires and the power supply hook up to) You can buy these parts alone or as a kit from a variety of places. http://www.smarthome.com carries the pieces, and you can get the kit from http://www.surroundsolutions.com. I have bought stuff from both places with no problem. If you have any comments, please share them! January 08 Wirelessly network two TivosI just finished setting up my two tivos so they can see eachother. Its a great addition, and you aren't limited to just two. Further, you can add your PC to the mix but Im not interested in that. So what do you need? How do you do it? Each non-direct-tv tivo has one or two usb ports in the back. They are usb 2.0, but the tivo drivers are 1.1, which are decidedly slower. So theoretically a future tivo patch will really open up some performance. Its with this in mind that I created a network that can run much faster than the tivos at this moment will use. 1) Purchase a USB-to-Ethernet converter. They run about $20-$24 dollars. Make sure you get a usb 2.0 converter so you can future-proof your purchase a bit. I recomend D-Link's DUB E100. 2) Next, obtain two wireless bridge adaptors. I avoid complexity and get game adaptors. They have one ethernet port and thats it. The two I got were D-Link's DWL-G820s. They range in price quite a bit based on rebates. These babies can go 108Mbps. We will be setting them up in 54Mbps mode, but thats much faster than the tivos are anyway. Now what you want to do is go to your computer and plug both G820s in. Using the supplied ethernet cable, connect one G820 to your PC and set it up in ad-hoc mode. Make its IP address 192.168.0.34 (if it complains about a bad gateway address, just put 192.168.0.35 in the gateway field). Then unplug the ethernet cable and plug it in the other G820. On its config page, put it in ad-hoc mode, and then do a sync search, then double-click the entry found (which should be the other unit). 3) Perform the following on each tivo: Attach the USB-to-Ethernet converter to the Tivo USB port, and attach the converter to the game adaptor via the ethernet cable. Go to Settings/Phone and network/IP Settings. Here are the settings for the Tivos: IP Address: 192.168.0.5 for one and 192.168.0.6 for the other. Notes: December 31 Review: Humax DRT-800 TivoHumax DRT-800 Tivo Review Humax introduced a very affordable standalone Tivo with DVD-Recording capability in 2004. I have a Pioneer Tivo DVD-R 810 and this was a good second tivo addition. I appreciate the ability to snag to DVD anything on the unit, and the ability to play dvds without a second component. You can find it in any Best Buy or Circuit City. The Unit The unit is light and cheaply built. That kind of plastic housing that feels like it could break at the slightest drop. Aesthetically, it looks like it took a page from a 1980's VCR. However given that, the functionallity surpasses the Pioneer 810. In addition to the front panel s-video and composite inputs, it has a firewire port. Further, it has full Tivo menu controls on the front panel itself using a (delicate) directional button and the tivo button. The Pioneer only has DVD controls. Its rear controls are the usual: component out, svideo out, rf cable in & rf bypass out, composite out & in. If you want progressive playback you have to use component. The front panel features include a clock display with some status info, the DVD and HD LEDs. See the tivo section for new features on controlling the front panel display. Don't put this unit in the bedroom. The Harddrive is very loud. I even tried to put Tivo in suspend mode, but you still hear the thing gronking along. I think I can drown the sound out well enough as its coming from the back of the unit. Anyway, be prepared. The 810 was a quiet whisper by comparison. Apart from the DVD playback, which is perfect, watching TV (which now is processed by your TIVO) is on par with other non-direct-tv tivos. Expect a noticable minor degradation of video quality as the unit has to digitize the RF signal itself (as opposed to directtv). The Remote If you don't have a Tivo, you will love the remote. The remote is a classic Tivo peanut with DVD functionallity, identical to the Pioneer 810, except for the rearrangement of a few key buttons. In fact, you can control the 810 and Humax with each other's remotes. I would point out here that the 810 remote feels more solid, while the Humax has a cheap, "too light" plastic feel to it. The TV Power and Input buttons moved to the top near the TIVO button - a good move, however the enter and clear buttons moved down to the botton (where the Pioneer has the TV power and input). This makes your thumb have to do some double-jointed backflip to hit the enter key if you use it for the "prev channel" feature. I wish they just kept the remotes the same. No, take that back, I would make ONE small change. I would texture the play button so at night you knew if you were holding the remote backwards. The TIVO Features The TIVO software is version 5.4, compared to 5.2 on the Pioneer unit. The differences are minor but affect several sections for the better. For one, the TV Guide option is back in, so you can view the tv guide in either Tivo format or Grid style. Unfortunately the grid display is very slow to render. The opening animation, background colors, and background graphics are different for the Tivo menus. The color changes are a bit disorienting at first and a needless change. One great change is in the setup menu. You have a large list of audio options now, and you can even configure the front panel display. Don't like the LEDs? turn them off. Clock too bright? You can set it to bright, dim, or off. Interestingly, after I went through the intial setup of the Tivo, I was provided Tivo Basic service (live TV controls, record by time & channel -- basically VCR type functionallity). The box never claimed to provide Tivo basic (which does not require a subscription), so I dont know if this was a mistake or a limited 30 day thing. Then again, neither the box nor instructions mention the front input panel which includes firewire. Anyway, in order to get to what you really want (what makes it a tivo) you have to subscribe monthly or buy out the service (lifetime). Its well worth it. The DVD Features The DVD player is outstanding, with progressive support to boot. If you have the 810, you will appreciate some newer tweaks to the DVD burner interface. Burning a DVD causes the main Tivo DVD menu item to display the DVD title and % complete. The menus you wade through to copy shows onto the DVD are the same as the 810 and very simple to understand. When burning a DVD, the Tivo will create the DVD menu for you, including all the information it has on the shows, such as original air date and synopsis. One feature still lacking from the generated menu however is a "play all shows" option. Conclusion For the price with all the rebate deals, this is a great pickup. If you are new to Tivo, why not get the DVD burner and collapse some of that video equipment stacked around your TV? |
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