DevinCollier.com

I seem to be purchasing small gadgets lately and this month has been no exception.  For work, I needed to put together a series of useful video presentations/screencasts for my fellow co-workers. After looking around on the Internet for a good set of headphones, I found the Plantronics brand and decided to give them a go.

Headset quality
The physical headset felt pretty solid even though it was entirely made out of plastic as most headsets are today. It folded nicely for travel, however it didn’t lay flat so be sure and consider this before slamming it in a briefcase.

Sound quality
Listening to music and other media was pleasant. The included USB sound card helped to digitize the sound from the computer although it was still converted to an analog signal. Overall, I did like using the headset to listen to podcasts, music, and movies.

Recording quality
This is where I think the Plantronics brand shines. The recording quality was very good with little interference, static, and other annoyances. With a little base enhancement help from Audacity or Garageband, these puppies worked great right out of the box. I find them ideal for screencasts, podcasting, or using them with skype or similar program.

Overall I enjoy using this headset. Since I’m on a MacBook Pro, capatibility was a concern, but the included USB sound card worked great out of the box with no drivers or extra software needed.

Recently, we have a need in my family to preserve slides by scanning them into the computer and digitizing our analog photo collection since mold, mildew, and other “elements” are starting to deteriorate the photos.

Costco had a sale on the 3600u slide projector making it an ideal alternative to sending them into a photo place for scanning. If we could just scan them in at home, we would be able to save money and
edit as we scan.  So I picked up one of these scanners and started working.

When I opened up the unit, I noticed that the scanning head had become jammed probably from shipping. A quick jerk knocked it back into place after I realized that it wasn’t supposed to be like that. After the

first few scans, I realized that there must be some issue with the scanner since none of the slides were turning out well. I decided to get another one to try and experience similar results of pictures being fuzzy, very dark, and generally horrible quality. I checked out the manufactures website and read through the manual.

After trying every setting possible (exposure, brightness, contrast, etc), I realized that scanning slides is something this unit wasn’t designed to do very well. Some of the slides that I know are very clean and clear come out horrible, dark, and completely unusable. Thank goodness I purchased this at Costco since their return policy is very liberal. Usually Costco has products with high quality; however this scanner must have been an exception to Costco’s quality guidelines.

The Good: Small form factor. Comes with Adobe Photoshop Elements. USB 2.0.
The Bad: Horrible quality. Manufactures software is very buggy in Windows (crashes often).  Scans take over 60 seconds each. Poor unit build quality. Only can scan one slide at a time. Scanner head has no “lock” mechanism for transportation protection.

Bottom Line: Save yourself the trouble and steer clear of this scanner (and I assume company). Costco offers slide scanning for $0.29 each at the photo lab each. They come on a CD and look fantastic.

With our recent tax rebate, my wife and I decided to upgrade our existing car stereo in our ‘99 Honda CRV. With our old car stereo, the sound wasn’t quite working and we wanted a way to use our MP3 player quickly and easily. When looking for a stereo, we marked the following requirements.

• Needed to have an axillary input
• Able to play MP3/WMA CDRW discs
• Not look like something out of a high school Honda Civic with a grotesque spoiler
• Needs to have HD radio tuner built-in

With those requirements I set out trying to find the best deal. From reading various articles on my vehicle, I learned that it would be very difficult to install. Usually I don’t mind attacking anything to do with the installation of electronics, but I just don’t have the time right now. This is why we purchased the stereo that provided free installation. We finally landed on getting a JVC KD-HDR30 which is a new model. I found it hard to get a hold of locally though. After installation and use for a few weeks here are the pros and cons.

Pros

• HD Radio is a really nice step up from traditional radio. Didn’t realize we had so many channels available to us in our area.
• We have many options to upgrade and use this stereo for our needs. The AUX input and bluetooth/iPod add-on modules are great ways to connect all your audio gear.
• Although this is a simple feature, having a CD player that can read MP3’s is great. It saves us so much time from switching between all of our old CDs.
• The remote works well and can be connected to the steering wheel for added convenience and safety.

Cons

• There is no quick seek where the radio plays a few seconds per station and allows you to find a good song while you drive. The lack of this feature is bizzare, but we hooked up the remote now and just use that to navigate while driving.
• The lights on the stereo are really really annoying at night. Even though they dim slightly when the headlights are turned on, it’s really distracting and makes it hard to concentrate on the road.
• Although HD radio is great, it’s not as awesome when you live in an area that only gets the signal here and there. Unlike analog signals that get added noise, digital HD signals just plain go out and all your hear is silence for a little while until the radio finds the station again. Also, it takes the stereo 4-5 seconds to “lock into” a digital radio station. You get used to it, but it would be nice if it just connected right away.
• The iPod adapter doesn’t work with the iPhone. It’s Apple’s fault, not JVC’s.

Bottom line

We’re pretty satisfied with our purchase and the installers at Circuit City. The stereo has a few small feature issues, but it works very well and the sound is great. I recommend not purchasing a car stereo that is “HD ready”. Always get the type with the tuner built-in. You’ll save money and installation costs down the road. It reminds of the “HD ready” TVs that went out of style within months of their launch date. Just spend the extra 30 bucks and get the tuner built-in.

With the built-in HD tuner, AUX front input jack, and MP3 CD player functionality, I’d give this stereo 4 out of 5 stars.

HP fuels the war on the cheapest laser printers by introducing the LaserJet 1020 series printer. It’s a direct descendant of the HP 1012 and 1018 printers with a smaller form factor and faster printing speeds.The HP 10XX LaserJet series printers have proven to be a great way to introduce laser printing benefits to home and small businesses. Typically, HP LaserJet printers have been somewhat costly compared to their Brother or Lexmark counterparts.

Reliability: This is borderline “throwaway” printer due to the difficulty or a technician in replacing key parts. From inspection, it appears that the roller and separation pad are the only easily changeable parts (besides the toner and drum). Generally Brother was the first that sold printers in which the consumables costs more than the printer. When the HP 1020 fails, it will probably be easier to purchase a new machine.

Performance: The HP 1020 prints incredibly fast for its size. At 15ppm, it can easily out perform most inkjet printers hands down.

Usability: One of the major downsides to this printer is that only Windows based computers can print to it. Most technicians agree that the Windows based market is prevalent in the computer world, but Macintosh computers along with Linux/Unix machines account for a portion as well. The Windows software does install easily, but it seems HP cut too many corners by only including the Windows family to the compact laser printing world.

Size: You must admit, after looking at this printer first hand, it’s seems that HP has really tried to reduce the size of this little printer. Due to the smaller size, any jam can be quickly removed from the printer, and it does fold up nicely when not in use.

Original retail price: $179.95
Current used price: $100.

I’ve just completed a review of the small, compact, and stylishly fast new printer from HP. Take a look to see the shortcomings of this small wonder of a LaserJet.

Review of the LaserJet 1020

I just finished a short review of this timeless classic printer that is still around in many businesses. Why? Well many people have asked me what worth they have in their current condition and what items are compatible with them. Since it’s one of the last metal-framed printers that HP built, there is still some good value left. Although there are a few common problems that can easily be fixed in most cases, a fully refurbished machine should last much longer than a new printer sold today from the same company (although it may not be as fast).

You can find the review at laserjetspecs.com