Flashe Reviews

Without a modem or ethernet card, your Pocket PC is just a PC companion product -- it must have a PC to get mail, surf, or message.

With a modem, your Pocket PC becomes a truly stand alone device.

This modem is the sturdiest design I've seen for dialing through a regular analog phone line. No frail parts to snap off, no weird connections that require you to purchase a different cable to connect. You'll be able to take this right out of the box, plug it in and get connected.

With this small, rugged modem I'm able to check my e-mail at times when hauling out my laptop would do -- waiting near the gate at an airport, at breaks in meetings, while visiting a client, etc. The ability to sync up my avantgo pages or get my most recent e-mail has been a great benefit to me, especially since I travel.

(Wondering why this review reads the same as the Pretec Modem review? It's the same gadget; this one just carries the Compaq brand.)

Your Pocket PC is just a toy until you have this modem.

Can you tell me if it works with, or protecs your modem from, digital phone lines??? Does it have any surge protection? How is it better than the Xirtec CF modem? Please respond I am soon going to need to get a modem for my P/PC and want to get the best one and I have a IPAQ and don't know if I am better off sticking with COMPAQ products for compatability/warranty issues. thank you !

This is an excellent modem. I've never had a problem with it. However, it is almost identical to the CF modem by Pretec. I bought both and compared them. In fact, it is made for Compaq by Pretec. My advice to Steve, buy the Pretec modem and save some cash.

This product has a very compact and ergonomic design. It came with a 5-volt converter, a USB cable, a remote control (don't seem to be useful), a video cable (so that you can view the image on TV), and a nice little carry case.

Menu nevigation is intuitive and does not require a whole lot of handbook reading.

I used a Sandisk Ultra II 256MB to do a test. It can download 22 fully-filled cards (with minimal use of the LCD screen) before the device finally running out of power and unable to download anymore.

When the battery level is high, the average download time is a little more than 3 minutes. However, when the level is below the indicated 60%, the download time is significantly longer. When the battery reach 60% or 0%, a warning message will appear on the screen. You can ignore and continue your download, or recharge the battery immediately. Even with 0%, you may have a chance to download one or more flash card.

The battery indicator is almost useless. It only shows 100%, 60% or 0%.

You do not need to turn on the device in order to download. Just stick the flash card in, and press the button. This can be a good feature if you are busy in the field.

The LCD screen, although big, does not have a very high resolution. Retrieving images is somewhat slow, especially it takes 3 seconds to view a RAW images.

The device does generate some heat while being used intensively. But it in no way can damage the LCD screen.

I never test its MP3 function.

This device is great. It does everything I wanted it to do, plus more. Displays my high resolution pictures, including JPEGs embedded in RAW files. It does MP3 files, but I don't use or listen to them. Nice display, great capacity, easy to use. Watch pictures on the TV too. Only one problem, battery life. There really is none. Also the parasitic draw/loss when the unit is off weill drain the batteries completely in about two weeks of non-use. The solution, buy an extra battery and get the car charger. Other then that, it's great!!!!

I LOVE this little thing! It's like having unlimited film and I'm SO happy to be rid of that notebook and all it's gear! I have a Canon 10D and a 1g cf card and now I can shoot everything RAW mode without worrying about space. I've looked at all the other "image tanks" but I found this to be the most useful because of it's large screen and a nice zoom function. I love the one button copy and how it turns on and off so quickly. The hard drive is VERY fast. Of course the most important thing about this product is it's reliability, so we will see.

Having played around with photography for 20 years now I am baffled by Vivitar.They produce the 283 flashgun (a good product). Then they produce the 285 with almost the same specs.Except the 283 trigger voltage is over 300 volts and the 285 is 8 volts. Ok if used on the old SLR`s.But what about digital cameras? There are users asking what flashgun can I use on my Fuji 4900 and 6900? I go faint at the thought of putting a 283 on my Fuji 4900. No information is given in the instruction book. So i must conclude with the old saying "Buyer beware"

I've been using Vivitar 283 and 285's for years now. I was introduced to the 285 when my backlight died on a Glamour shoot. The style my client wanted was an over exposed background to ad a haze around the subject through the softener1 filter. This required a powerful flash. The only store near the salon was a Carmen's camera and all they had in their used department was this old 285, the man in the store, a professional photographer himself, assured me that with a slave unit on the manual setting this flash would be powerful enough to do the job. He even had an SB-4 power supply and this little plastic display unit, which made a perfect little backlight stand!

Not only did this flash recycle in time, it was powerful enough to do the job. This little flash even replaced my Metz for wedding work because of its compact size!

I also noticed at the time that many other press photographers were leaving their Metz's at home too! For travelling and backpacking I bring my 283, which is very light and also has the remote sensor feature so handy for close-up work.

The 283 also sits nicer on the hot shoe being lighter, making the camera less top-heavy. Which brings me to the only complaint I have with these two flashes.... or many hot shoe flashes for that matter. Shooting at crowded concerts or busy news scrums the vulnerability of the hot shoe is always on my mind, on more than one occasion I have broken this hot shoe and had to order a new one which requires a bit of assembly and downtime. To make up for this -the remote sensor makes it possible to use these flashes off camera even with the broken hot shoe and with the amount of used 283's and 285's out there at good prices, they are still the best darn portable mini flashes I've come across!

With an on camera 283 fill light, reflected, a slaved 285 with a reflector on a stand next to the camera and a 283 slaved for a back light and you have yourself a portable studio, but watch out your subject doesn't step on the backlight!

Vivitar 283s made from the late 1990's onward will work fine with Digital Cameras. Only older units from the 1980's and early 1990's have a trigger voltage that sometimes exceeds 300v. Newer units will may function just fine depending on what voltage your camera can handle (again, research). You can test the trigger voltage of the unit by using a multimeter on the shoe pins and triggering the flash with the test button. Much more information can be found via a web search.

This media card reader does live up to all the good reviews it's gotten. The download time is fast and the usability/reliability is sound. The one drawback to this model is that it is a little too big and heavy.

This reader is great if:

1. You actually need to use more than just a compact flash or smartmedia card reader: this reader is also equipped to handle Memory Sticks, Secure Digital, MultiMediaCards, and IBM Microdrives.

2. You're planning on using this reader for your desktop and not a laptop.

This card may not be the best choice if you plan to travel (or just go mobile with your laptop) based on its size and weight.

No more loading drives for each different digital product with media! Pop in and it works great!

I bought this universal reader from Micro Center because it was on sale. I actually didn't even think it would work because it was a brand I hadn't heard of. HOWEVER. I am using Windows XP Pro and it works FANTASTIC!! I used to use my HP Photosmart printer to upload pictures and it would take FOREVER. This card reader opens my SmartMedia disk in seconds. Incredibly easy to install and an overall great product!!

Followed the instructions for installation and Windows recognized the reader, but would not read the compact flash card. Got the message that the card was not formatted even though it contained valid data. By the way, this unit requires installation of a driver with Win 98 systems. The existence of this unit on the usb bus prevents the operation of a SmartMedia reader that I use.

Works really well. Haven't had any problems. Quick downloads for my photos.

At the price, you can't beat it. There's not much to say about a card reader but it works. Read and write speeds are above average in my opinion. It looks great and comes with a 1 year warranty. I'm happy I made the purchase.

I bought one of these for my new digital camera. 4 days and over 50 MB of photos later, this Memory Stick had a fatal error, taking all of my photos with it. I tried to retrieve the data several ways and all failed. Buy at your own risk. I'd go with a different brand if I were you. I lost photos I'll never get back, and when I returned the stick, the guy at the store told me that this happens more regularly with Lexar than other brands.

I didn't even figure that reviewing Lexar memory sticks was worthwhile, since they did their job so well that they could easily be forgotten about. I got a cardreader for the holidays and didn't realize the stick had an LED for data transmission until I used said reader - very slick. And for anyone worried about power drain with digital camera applications, the constantly lit power-on LED for your camera draws more juice than this one does. Highly recommended.

I was nervous buying this at almost half the price as the original sony memory stick, because I was putting it in my camera. With the camera - if the memory stick has errors, well those pictures are all gone... and unlike losing some phone numbers from your PDA because of bad memory - you can't recreate photos from your friends wedding because your memory stick went bad on you.

Well, the nervousness was unfounded! I've used this stick heavily since I bought it a few months ago, and has never failed me. It performs just as well as the smaller sony stick that came with the camera.

I'd also highly recommend the memory stick reader Lexar makes (you'll find it here on Amazon as well). I bought it after loosing the cable that connects my camera to my computer (the memory reader is *cheaper* than that single cable, if you can believe it!) and it's *better* because you don't waste batteries transferrring your pictures, and there's no cables to mess with when it's time to upload your pictures - just pop the mem stick into the reader that's always hooked up...

End result - Very happy with this memory stick and other Lexar products. They've worked flawless for me so far :)

This is a good quality light. I've had mine on a keychain for a while. The best features are the sleek design and the leash. The design makes it fit well with keys on a keychain. I like to keep my keychain slim enough to fit into a jeans pocket,and this light allows that very well. The leash allows you to point the light where you are aiming your keys. Recently, however, I found a replacement. It is a garrity brand LED flashlight. It is a think rectangle design about the same size as a key. The light works well too. So the mag light is now on my car key, which works well for finding things in the trunk. For a flashlight to keep in the car, I'd advise the mag 2 AA flashlight.

The light is good, but will twist off from normal use on a keychain. In fact, my broke from falling on the ground. I will not buy this light again. Also a little heavy on the keychain.

After 8 years of use the only thing wrong with my Solitaire is that the finish has worn off & the lens area is slightly bent! If I had to do it over again I would buy a blue Solitaire instead of a red one. If you don't use rechargable batteries I recommend buying heavy-duty alkaline batteries as they seem to last the longest as well as work the best. Be glad you spent the extra money to buy the best flashlight made in the USA as it will serve you better than you treat it! Enjoy your purchase & recommend it to your friends wholeheartedly.

I've carried a 2AA mini-mag for over 12 years. For the price, its a good light. BUT, with LED technology becoming common, this light is becoming outdated. On the positive side, the Mag 2AA is a well built and reliable device. However, the beam quality is very poor. Its not that bright to start out with, but worst yet it loses brightness very quickly and turns brown as the batteries decrease. The beam is full of holes, rings, and blemishes no matter how much it is focused (adjusted).

Having said that, one can buy an LED conversion unit from Opalec and install it on a new Mini-mag. The Opalec conversion unit provides steady brigtness for 10 hours and turns a Mini-mag into a state-of-the-art compact flashlight. I have an Opalec unit on my Mini-Mag, and I no longer use the standard Mag bulbs--the standard Mag bulbs are junk in my opinion

Even with that said, there are much better compact flashlights available. The Pelican M6 LED is shorter in length than a Mini-mag, and yet is so much brighter with a superior beam (pure white beam that stays white as the batteries are depleated).

If price is your sole concern, the Minimag will get the job done, but at a mediocre performance level (compared to more modern designs). The Minimag is a reliable and well built light, despite its inferior optics. For the price, its good enough to give a moderate recommendation. If Maglite upgrades their design and offers LEDs, I think that will really improve their beam quality.

I was given this light by my brother and it works great. The casing is very strong and duriable, and the flashlight is very bright for it's small size. You can still even see the beam in a well lit room.

The only reason I'm bothering to put in a review is to give a word of warning. While deffinately better than any other flashlight of this size I've had, the on/off switching method isn't perfect. The regular Maglights are said to have superior switches that do not fail as is so common with a regular flashlight. However the Double A Battery Mags have a different type of on/off switch. With this type of switch you screw the head in or out to turn the light on. This switching method is not perfect because you also adjust the focus of the beam with by twisting the head as well.

The problem my little Mag has is that at the tightest focus, the head is rather loose on the casing and can rock back and forth. This rocking can cause the flashlight to shut on and off when the head pushes against the off switch/lighting assembly. Most of the time when I'm using a flashlight, I want the strongest beam/tightest focus, and it can be a bit bothersome to jiggle the head so the light remains on.

This thing is still better than any other mini flashlight I've ever seen, but I just wanted to let those of you looking know that it's still not perfect.

I'd recomend you get one anyway.

I purchased a mini-maglite in 1994 while in the Marine Crops in a raid-company. I practiced raids on Zodiacs (the rubber rafts that you see special forces use in the movies)and everywhere I went I had my flashlight with me. This flashlight was dunked in the ocean countless time...dropped...kicked...used as a hammer...left in the rain. You get my drift. To this day I still have it...it looks rough, but still works the same as the day bought it. It is amazing. The only maintenance I have done was to wash the sand and salt off of it.

The AS-E900 synch cord works well with my Coolpix 995. Unfortunately, it is very short and the sych terminal is awkwardly placed on the bottom of the 995. This means you must also buy the SK-E900 bracket for the camera. I found that I could not mount the camera on my favorite Stroboframe bracket with the synch cord attached. I've ended up just using a straight bracket and keeping both my hands on the camera and flash. Nikon should have thought this through. I love the camera except for this.

I use this little adapter for flash on my Coolpix 990 and 995.
It is necessary to have it for these cameras.
Because, without AS-E900 one cannot use an external flash.
This makes the Coolpix cameras so much more versatile than without.
...~(My Only Beef)~...
Is that: I wish the cable were a little longer.
Nevertheless, it is worth every penny as is.
In addition, you will not find it cheaper than... Amazon.com

If you use the AS-E900 with a good flash bracket, like the Magic Bracket or Roll Bar, you are going to get great flash results with your Coolpix camera.
http://www.magicbracket.com
http://www.therollbar.com

I agree that it would have been good if Nikon had made the cable a bit longer, but with a good bracket that has been designed for use with the AS-E900, you will get great results!

This setup will work on the Coolpix 950, 990, 995, and 4500.

I have rated the AS-E900 as 5 stars, since it is really the only way to connect an external flash to your Coolpix camera (models listed above), and if used with a good bracket (not the Nikon one) you should be very happy with it.

Other extras to look at (so you can use the flash off camera at a distance of up to 10 feet) are Nikon's...
AS-10,
SC-18,
SC-19,
SC-17,
AS-15

Hope this helps you to make your buying decision.

Michael Offe.

...First, I would say, it is an good design, a must for computers not having USB ports and it is convenient to use compared to USB reader(unfortunetly, the USB ports is usually located on the back of the computer). then the bad part: 1. No instructions on installing, no documents, papers and wrong information on Web support. Although installation went smoothly, but it is not the way doing business. Buyer needs to be pretty experienced with computer files. 2. Although the physical size of the product is compatible to a standard 1.44" FD, it does not mean you can use this adapter to any computer you like. First, you need to install the driver and it may not work with your system, (i.e Laptop FDD, Imoge FDD, USB FDD, etc) and this is not mentioned on technical description. One the motivations of buying this adaptor was to use it as a ZIP driver, so I can tranfer big files to different computers, but obviously, not every computer will install the driver for this. 3. Speed. Although it is much faster than serial port,but it is still very slow. I carefully measured the speed, it is about 3K bytes / second, that is about 1.8M bytes per minute. Just image that how long it will take to transfer 64M data, which is the memory size used in my digital camera. By the way, a USB adaptor can get a trasfer rate of 1.5M bytes per second.

Conclusion: Buy it if you have no choice (no USB port)

I have not used a USB reader, so I cannot comment on speed from that standpoint. This was a very good solution for my family, our computer has some sort of peripheral coming out of every port and I love the idea of no cables to work with. While its true that the flashpath does not come with much information, I think its because it doesn't really need it. It took me less than 10 minutes to open the package, load the driver and retrieve photos from my smartmedia. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is that it seems expensive, especially when compared to a USB reader.

This is a great little device. I got it to go with my Olympus D-490 digicam and it works great with the smartcards. At first I thought I made a bad purchase becuase the manual said it only worked with cards up to 32M. This was true until I downloaded the software from their website. It works perfectly now with the 32 and the 64 MB smart media. I didn't give it five stars because the file transfer is slower than I thought it would be. It takes about 15 to 20 seconds to copy 1MB. Still, this is much faster than the serial cable, and much more convenient. No cables lying around, and you can turn the camera off and not drain the batteries while you transfer the pictures to the computer. It's also handy for moving large files from one computer to another when you don't have a network connection. I would recommend this for people who have a smart media device with no USB connection.