Computer Reviews

I bought the WR850g 6 months ago. The user's manual is well written, and it is easy to set up. The security options include WPA and mac address control. It has worked flawlessly with my OSX Powerbook and WinXP laptop. The security protocol set up is a little confusing, and the manual needs more examples. You should also check Motorola's website for firmware updates.

Worth the money. Looks a whole lot better than the Linksys on my desk. Set up was easy.

I replaced a Netgear WGR614 (which was a piece of junk) with this Motorola router. The Motorola ROCKS. I've had no problems at all with it, and it has better range and signal quality than the Netgear. I was walking around outside in my yard with my laptop...out to the street, and then back into the back yard. The signal was weaker outside than inside, but I never lost the signal.

I've been practicing on my car, dog, and family. I'm getting better. The zoom is excellent. Picture quality is excellent.

I've had this camera for a couple of months and I love it. The pictures look great and it is very easy to use. Its big and boxy so it won't fit in a small purse or pocket, but its worth hanging a camera case around your shoulder if you like to take high quality outdoor pictures.

I replace my old Olympus 450 with this camera. I loved the old camera but it did not have all the features that I wanted. The new camera is great. It takes great pictures out of the box. If you spend the time to get to know all the features it takes even better pictures. I love being able to customize the settings. The zoom is the best feature of the camera. Allows you to get very close to your subject. Battery life is great but I would buy an extra battery because it does not give much warning when it is going.

I have one base system and 4 additional headset in different rooms. We had no problem at all with the system inside or outside of the house (single level). That covers around 20,000 sq ft area. Caller ID works great. Answering system is OK (we only use one in-box and didn't even bother with recording our own outgoing message). No problem with 802.11b/g wireless computer network. Works with filtered DSL telephone line. Handset substained multiple drops by the kids and myself on hardwood floor.

Some minor things that I think can be better:
- make the handset lighter
- have a clock on the handset
- have a mode that distribute the phone list to all the handset automatically. Right now I need to add a new number, then manually send the new phone list to each remote handset one at a time.
- have more colorful handsets

I agree with all the positive reviews. My wireless network is unaffected by these phones and having a speaker-phone built into the handsets just floored me. The only gotcha which I haven't seen mentioned is the way numbers are stored in the phones. The maximum number of digits is 32 which isn't enough when using my calling card. You can't use multiple memory locations to store everything either since once the phone is dialed the phonebook isn't accessible. It's a nit but an annoying one on an otherwise fine phone.

In general, I have found that whatever you can do from the base phone you can do at the handset also, including erasing all caller id at once, rather than one by one. This particular issue on how to erase either one or all the caller id's is on page 33 of the manual. The manual can be found on Amazon.com's web page for either of the base phones that are required for this handset.

The Panasonic TV/DVD/VCR combo is the ideal purchase in a combination television for these reasons:

1. Good picture quality. I've seen better, but I've seen worse, and for more money.

2. Renders components obsolete. The moment I got my television home, I was able to disconnect my VCR from my digital cable converter and hook the new television directly to the converter. No need for an additional DVD or VCR component, which is nice because now there aren't so many cords lying around on the floor behind the television, a big plus if you're type-A like I am.

3. Competitive pricing. For the quality behind the brand name, this television is priced to outsell others in its category, period.

4. Short ramp-up time. The television is easy to program and the remote is extremely user-friendly. Plus the manual that accompanies the television is one of the most well-written component user's manuals I have ever read. The time span between removing the television from the box and watching the television might have been 20 minutes.

My family spent the weekend enjoying our new purchase. If you're in the market for a TV/DVD/VCR combo, then look no further. You've found it!

*This review refers to the 27-inch television.

hiii

this adil,,, i am form wisconsin milwaukee,,,
i boutht a new tv but i dont have the remot control
so, i would like to get one from your great company
the tv model # pv-dm 2093
please help me to get what i am looking for
thakns and my pleasurs
to be one of your best custmors
yours adil ahmed

I owned a 13" Panasonic TV/VCR for about 8 years and loved it so when I decided to get a larger television set I looked around at different brands, but decided to go with Panasonic again since the brand is such good quality.

I love this 20" TV/DVD/VCR. It's a great size, and great quality. After this purchase, I believe my loyalty to Panasonic has increased notably. I will most likely purchase Panasonic in the future.

I have had mine for about 4 months and overall I love them. The mouse is very comfortable and the scroll wheel is addicting. I have not had to replace the batteries in the keyboard, but I have been through about a half dozen sets in the mouse.So far, though, this is my only complaint.

Having purchased a cordless mouse a few months earlier and really enjoying the freedom it provided, I picked up this cordless keyboard about 8 or 9 months ago. It has proven itself to be one of the best investments I've made in a long time.

I've been nothing but impressed with its range. The six foot range advertised is nothing for this keyboard...actually, just fot the heck of it, I'm sitting across the room right now to type this review--around 10 feet away--and the keyboard is picking up every stroke (I think I should move closer...my eyes are starting to get strained!).

I've also been extremely impressed with the durability of this product. Being cordless, this keyboard tends to get picked up and moved a lot, and, as a result, dropped. I've dropped this one several times and there really isn't even a scratch on it. Also, it's running on its original batteries--2 AAA's--which I think is pretty impressive, considering how much I type.

The layout is also really nice. I've never quite gotten used to the Logitech Pro or the Microsoft Natural keyboard layout...this one is classic, and suits me fine. The CD player controls on the keyboard are also a nice touch, as are the "favorites" buttons, that will take you to a specified web site or launch a particular program.

This keyboard is worth the investment. I'm thinking about getting the mouse, too.

well right now this very second, i am use it to write this on my webtv. the mounse i can only use with the computer. but its the kewboard is very adaptable. i can not work with out this keyboard!

I have had (the wheel-less version of) this trackball for what seems like forever. It's outlasted two computers, three moves, and must have been with me over 5 years at this point. (It was the brand-new, cutting-edge model when I got it!)

It fits *so* comfortably in the hand, especially for someone with long fingers like me. (Putting my fingers on a top-ball model means my thumb is too short to reach the buttons!)

It's simple to clean, has never given me a moment's grief, and is still going strong today. Considering it's been disconnected (*why?!?!?), I'm thinking about getting another now just as protection against the day it finally dies, I don't want to ever use anything else!

This mouse is one of the best I have ever used. With or without the scroll wheel, it is the only mouse our household (of 5 computers) has used for years. Two nights ago one of ours gave out, and I went to Staples to replace it only to discover that they discontinued them. The replacement model has serious issues - it's more compacted and has a sharp ridge down the middle, as well as having the trackball moved further up, making use painful.

If you can get your hands on one of these, do it. Logitech no longer makes a comfortable trackball with the ball on the left side.

From a person who earns his living with a mouse. I work with CAD/CAM software daily. In the old days a mouse might last 6 months - this one lasted over three years. My boss bought a TrackMan Marble one day and soon we all had them due to the comfort. No hand cramping! In CAD you constantly use your mouse pointer and this was the best of the best. Too bad they discontinued it. The replacement design was not made for the pro - it's simply a consumer mouse. Once a person becomes used to this mouse, he or she wants no other. If you considering this mouse for a try I say buy it!

I bought this system for $30, so I don't have a vested interest in it one way or another. I have owned Eminent Technology LFT VIII speakers made by Bruce Thigpen in Florida, who licensed the planar technology to Monsoon. I expected great things, as the LFT VIII's were among the best speakers I'd ever used. I was slightly disappointed, but only slightly. And my results may be in part dependent on my soundcard and computer setup, as all results are. However, I found these speakers, although reasonably accurate at the desktop level, to be slightly grainy and "digital" in presentation. The base module was the most disappointing, but considering its size, I would expect nothing else. It is small; midbass peaks are prominent, and can only be ameliorated, but not cured, by judicial use of the Media Player equalizer and SRS. In the end, a similarly priced Cambridge Soundworks Microworks, in my view and in my system, is simply better. I judge this based upon 15 years of playing in the audiophile game, with over 100k of electronics. That doesn't mean I have better ears, but it does mean I listen carefully. With the Monsoons, I hear notes, but don't get well integrated bass, or musical "sounds." With the MicroWorks, I hear a more "chimelike" sound in the sats - almost tubelike - which leads to longer listening sessions and a more satisfying musical experience. The bass is much better integrated. The Monsoons are very good - and excellent for the money - but in the end, they are perhaps too accurate a transducer. At close range, I don't want to hear digital jitter and crud; a bit of euphany is fine by me. The Monsoons don't make me want to sing and dance; they make me want to take notes about how good they are. Just not quite enough to put them over the top. But good!

When I bought a new computer several months ago, I did some research on my audio options and decided to go with Monsoon speakers. For the previous few years, I had a four speaker system that sounded OK but which provided me with ample opportunities to trip on all the cords scattered across the floor. I was leery of a two-speaker system, though, wondering how in the world it could actually simulate sounds from all directions with just two snazzy but relatively compact speakers. I was tired of tripping over wires, though, and the look and name and reasonable price of this system appealed to me, so I embraced the challenge and dreamed of being engulfed by torrential waves of glorious sound. Hooking the system up was as quick and easy as two shakes of a lamb's tail. You have the subwoofer and two speakers, and that's it. I don't have a lot of space on my desk, but the speakers easily sit on either side of my monitor, taking up little space, and my subwoofer is safely ensconced under my desk. There's a little handheld control unit for muting and adjusting the volume which I can leave dangling over one arm of my chair for easy access when needed. Best of all, there are no wires trailing across my floor to extra speakers behind me.

I am no expert on audio technology, but I can tell you the sound is excellent to my ears. It may take you a little while to get the speakers positioned perfectly, though - with this flat technology, some of the rich sound you want can go whizzing right by your ear if you don't have your speakers aligned correctly. The placement doesn't have to be absolutely perfect, though; it's not as if you have to hold your head perfectly still in order to enjoy the magic of the aural environment this system is capable of creating. As long as the speakers are pointed in your general direction, you are going to get excellent sound. The most amazing sound, though, can only be heard in the sweet spot, and fortunately it only takes a little time and adjustment to find this sweet spot and thus begin hearing your music and games in a whole new way. Songs I have listened to for years suddenly seemed brand new because I was hearing nuances I had never heard before. Game play sound is also excellent; atmospheric games are made more involving and fun than ever - those bad guys sneaking up behind you really sound as if they are sneaking up behind you. DVD sound really comes alive to help create an optimum DVD viewing experience. I love my Monsoon speaker system; it looks cool, sounds fantastic, and saves a lot of space on and around my computer table. I can't really explain how Monsoon's Planar Focus Technology creates such a rich three-dimensional sound from two speakers, but I can certainly testify to the fact that it does indeed do just that. Unless you have more money than you know what to do with, I enthusiastically recommend a Monsoon speaker system for your computer audio needs.

I first heard this set of speakers in CompUSA over a year ago. I was about three aisles away and could not believe the tremendous sound! I made an immediate purchase. I've had them ever since and still thoroughly enjoy them ! I find the base more than adaquate. A superb sound for something so little. I take them along with me when I travel and hook them to my notebook so I can share music with my friends -- they are always impressed. Great sound with DVD also.

I'm an audio guy first, so I can tell you first hand, yes, this has improved the imaging and dynamics of my system. For video applications, colors are more vivid, pictures sharper, and even cable TV looks better.

This is [money] well spent. Give it a week to break in, and you'll really start to notice how much you're enjoying music and watching movies, with this hooked into yer system.

...at least somebody is catering to this market. There are so many products out there (cables, power, etc.) that are so obviously designed to make money by giving you the cheapest possible components. I purchase my Monster products with delight because at least they APPEAR to care about quality. I have never actually compared this power strip to another by watching the same video feed and cannot say for sure that it does what it says with regard to filtering AC pollution. BUT, I do know that AC pollution exists and sometimes my mobile video equipment will pick up radio signals and corrupt microphone recordings. This power strip does completely eliminate RF (radio frequency) interference, and that alone made it worth the purchase for me.

The "Monster CLEAN POWER circuitry (Model HTS800) has it all for your audio / video components. Including Sound & Picture.

Simple to use Monster provides you with color coded outlets with mathching tags to apply to the appropiate plugs. (This is very important in those times of removing the correct plug without disturbing the existing system setup).

These are the perks of the HTS800:

* The power cord is 8 foot in length and has a 3 prong plug with a 30 degree offset to allow use of adjacent wall outlets. (A very convenient and wonderful feature).

* 8 outlets to cover all your needs, 5 color coded ones to include; VCR, DVD, Cable, CD, & Audio AMP. 3 additional widely spaced outlets for TV and 2 Spares.

* Video cable antenna (coaxiale) / DSS or DIVX surge protection filter circuit (improves cable picture by up to 30%).

* Phone line surge protection filter.

* A free 6 foot monster video and telephone cable.

*Visual and audio surge alarm.

This CLEAN POWER system is a must for that Family Room with all the gadgets !!!!!!!

Your investment needs to be protected and this is the ALL IN ONE product that can do it for you. I love mine.

I already owned a Speedlight SB-28dx for use with my F100 on a Stroboframe bracket for off-camera flash. The SK-E900 enables me to use the same flash on my Coolpix 4500. It is a practical accessory for the Coolpix 900 series and 4500 digital cameras, as long as you don't mind investing in another flash or already have one. Your camera will automatically meter the light and adjust the output of both the built-in and external flash. Results are superb. Simply, it attaches easily, it is light, and it is well balanced.

Excellent reviews already written. I only want to add that the 995 was supposed to reduce to dreaded "Red-eye" that has been a problem with previous 990's. But I have a 995 and all of the in-door pictures I have taken of my "Great-God Son" have produced major red-eye, and this bracket eliminates that problem.

I use the bracket to connect my Coolpix 995 with my Nikon SB-27 speedlight and it works quite well. Unlike other reviewers, I like the built in flash with the Coolpix, but since I already use this flash with my Nikon SLR, I wanted to be able to use it with my digital too. It works well and the bracket includes the Multi-Flash Adapter Cord, which you might not expect for this price. My only caveat in recommending this product is once mounted on a bracket with a flash, the Coolpix becomes a bit bulky. One of the features I like best about the Coolpix is that it is so compact and once you start adding all these different attachments obviously you start to lose that virtue. However, if you want to do serious flash photography with your Coolpix or you need to reduce the incidence of red-eye in your pictures, this bracket is the way to go.

I purchased my Lumix LC5 for personal use after using one in my profession for displaying enlargements and for publication. After 1300 exposures and half as many prints at many degrees of enlargement I feel very at home with the LC5.

What caught my attention immediately was its similarities in appearance to the Canon G series, and a couple of major label 35mm German rangefinder cameras of recent years. Picking the camera up and trying it out in the store I was reminded of the size, weight, and controls of quality traditional film cameras.
The Leica name on the lens really sold the camera before I had a chance to see its output. And therein lies the fly in the ointment, albeit a small fly if the user is familiar with post-camera photo editing processes to repair the fault.

Clearly, the optics are outstanding. The menus are well thought-out. One can use vitually all kinds of metering methods and achieve wonderful exposures with the LC5.

The weak point appears to be the processor which often "overprocesses" the 1680 X 2240 images. The result can be posterization effects in neutral areas, and eccessive "noise" appearing as grain on the monitor at high magnifications. This is especially observed at ISO's of more than 100. I have found however, that there is less appearance of these problems in print output than on the monitor.

At times I've had mysteriously underexposed original files that needed post-processing as well. All of this is correctable if one has the time and skill and enjoys doing it.

I found that using the 1600 X 1200 resolution setting seemed to clear up almost all of the problems. Perhaps the CCD and processor are really better designed for the smaller files. The problem is, I have a two megapixel camera for the price of a four, if I stick with the lower resolutions. This isn't a problem until enlarging above 5 X 7. So if you're not planning to enlarge much above that, the 2 megapixel solution works.

But the question is: do you want to pay for a four megapixel camera that doesn't quite measure up to its competition? For the sake of the wonderful speed, build quality, optics, and camera-like handling, I'm still not too sad about the processor downside. But I might be changing up to another camera a year or two down the road for those really perfect enlargements the competition seems capable of producing at four megapixels and above.

If you don't need the "Perfect" camera in this price range, the Lumix LC5 has a lot of things to offer.

Boy was I worried about buying this camera. I have read ALL the reviews and there was just enough negative pub to give me pause. But I'd seen Steve Lang's sample pics at a Fry's display and was impressed with its potential, even though he is a National Geographic photographer. I was worried about the durability issue, but then I remember even my Minolta Maxxam 5000 went down on me a couple of times. Well, I saved enough on the camera to buy a 5yr service contract, bit the bullet and bought it, got it home, zipped through the booklet and rattled off a few macro pictures of some cosmos growing in my alley. Holy pixels, Batman, the clarity, the color the beauty of that Leica lens just blew me away. Ya gotta READ the booklet to get the MOST out of this camera, but even without it the pics are simply glorious . . . and that's just the screen renderings! Bear in mind this camera is optimized for PRINTS not SCREENS. I can't wait to print some of these beauties. OK so the built in flash is a bit strong inside, but which one isn't? I was excited to learn you can program it to adjust the flash output, the exposure, saturation, quality and other features. The neat thing is I got GREAT pics without the flash inside with just ambient light. It looks, good, feels good, the big screen is GREAT, the pics are stunning and it is EASY to use. I just looked at a self pic I took last night here in my room with a tripod and the 10 sec delay, no flash and just ambient, incandescent light. The flesh tones are so natural and the definition is so frighteningly clean that my ugly mug almost jumps off the screen. Scary! This is one SCARY neat camera too! I understand it has been discontinued. Too bad! If you can find one buy it! It will impress you!

I don't own this one, but after getting a killer deal on a Panasonic DMC-LC40, I dug around a little. This camera here (LC5) is virtually identical with the Leica Digilux1. The Digilux1 is Leica's top of the line for point and shoot digital cameras. The only step up is a CCD backplane adapter they offer for their SLR line, which will cost you (including the SLR body plus lens) the equivalent of a new car! After playing with my LC40, which seems to have the same lens as this one, I have taken shots that I never had from my 35mm SLR set in almost 25 years in the hobby. I would not hesitate to get an LC5 (if I were not already happy with my LC40), as the Leica optics, coupled with the fast action and high resolution Panasonic electronics have a created a combination that blows everything else out of the water!