Archive for May, 2010
I think the best feature of the Forerunner 305 is seen when you use it, the pace and HR feautres in every day use just work, and that’s what you need in a training device you use every day. Also like the display because it’s big enough to actually see and it’s highly modifiable. The training partner is also a really nice feature, making it possible to race against time, distance, pace, not sure why, but psychologically it’s always just more effective to have someone you’re trying to beat, even an electronic stand in.
Here are the issues (they aren’t deal breakers, but they’re also NOT small):
1. need better driver support – win 7 64 bit driver BSOD all the time when you go to upload data (and garmin knows this)
2. the software for anaylsis purposes is simply not in the same league as what comes with the Polar 800SD (not even close)
3. the strap is one generation behind the Polar, they need to adopt cloth sensors, they’re just more comfortable to wear
4. start/stop/pause isn’t intuitive (if you’ve used a polar and garmin to compare, you’ll know what i mean)
I gave it 4 stars over all, because again, the criticisms aren’t deal breakers, in day in day out use on actual runs this device shines, it’s all the stuff ancillary to the run where garmin needs to work on improvements, like the data anaylsis, drivers, HRM strap update, etc.
Music Basics Violin Complete
The first time I heard about this book was about two or three years ago when my cousin told me this was “soooo gooood!” and I had to read it. I didn’t at first because I knew it was in the Young Adult section of the bookstore and I am always a bit iffy about that section.
Then, once the movie came out and there was this huge craze that followed, I definitely didn’t want to read the books because I try to not get sucked into all the hype.
This past Thanksgiving, I saw that another one of my cousins had the books and I asked her if I could borrow the first book so I could find out what all this mess was about. I definitely didn’t want to waste my money if the books turned out to be as dumb as I thought they would be.
So, on the car ride home I started reading … and reading… and reading … I found that I couldn’t put the book down! When I wasn’t reading, I was thinking about the book and how I wished I could be reading. True this is no mind bending, life changing work of literature, but I found it to be quite addictive and I don’t know why!
As soon as I finished the first book, I ran out to Wal-mart and bought the other three books because I couldn’t wait to have them shipped to me from Amazon.
By the end of the next week, I had finished all the books!
I hate my self a little for getting sucked into these books, but I just found them so entertaining and addictive.
Speedotron Metal Protective Flashtube
I works really well. I boil the water before pouring it in the tank so that extra step really seems to help.
Space T shirt
I was impressed with the reviews prior to purchase. The HJ-112 is impressive and appears durable. I have had it about three weeks and use it every other day on an indoor measured track. The steps appear to be accurate enough, but the mile measure, even after numerous recalibrations IAW the instructions, does not measure very close. This is disturbing as I had planned to use it for distance tracking. I would recommend it only for steps, and that said, I would not buy another just for that purpose.
Ethernet To Coax HPna
Add this one to the pile of classics that weren’t for me. This was another one in my banned or challenged list. While the story was ok, I never found a point to it. It seemed to lack a plot or something. It was an easy read, but I was extremely glad when it was over!
Shure PG14 PG30 Wireless
So enjoyed the book, well researched, enticing story, pulls you in with romance and suspense. Excellent storyline, you fall in love with the characters and dont want to let go.
Space Onesie
I purchased two of these cables after reading the reviews on them expecting them to be a basic HDMI cable, but when they arrived they were just wrapped in plastic so they could have easily been dropped, or damaged on shipment. I hook one up to my PS3, and the other to my Xbox 360. I turn on the PS3, and the signal is not coming through at all, I reset the display settings on the PS3, and finally get it to display a picture, but at only 480p. I get it to run at 1080i, but when I try 1080p the signal goes out. I switch the cables around and try the other one, and I do get a 1080p signal for my PS3, but the screen fuzzes every 10 seconds, and it cuts in, and out. Unfortunately I’m not one that likes to sound negative, but you get what you pay for. These HDMI cables are garbage, and I am extremely dis-pleased with these. Its work it going out buying the cables for a few more bucks so you know for sure they will work. These cables are also not shielded so they can easily go out in a little time, unfortunately for me that time was around 5 seconds. Please don’t be tricked by the cheap price, these items are terribly made, and its not worth the wait.
Earthwise Toner HP Laserjet
This is an inexpensive but very functional watch. Given that it is made of plastic, it is attractive and comfortable to wear. I bought it to replace an earlier model of this watch which lasted over 10 years before it lost the sound for its alarm. Great for every day wear and 2 useful aspects for travel — alarm and dual time zones.
Casio Men s HDD600
Work great and are actually flexible. A more expensive HDMI cable at I bought was so think and stiff that it was twisting in the back of my blu-ray player and causing the video to flicker. These provide the same video/audio quality but are cheaper and easier to use cause you can easily bend them around tight corners. Perfect product.
AllerAir 5000 D S