Recently whilst in the process of changing from my MacBook Pro to an iMac I went through a stage of being ‘computerless.’ In today’s modern era that’s just not an option! Couple this with a recent holiday to America during which I borrowed a friends netbook to use as a storage device for the bucket loads of photos and videos I took and found it to be a brilliant little device for this purpose. Every traveller should consider taking a netbook with them, couple with a portable HDD for backups it is the perfect solution for storing and viewing a large amount of photos. You can then obviously do basic editting, emailing etc, and the storage options you have are much greater than say for example a 16Gb or even 64Gb iPad. A netbook will have for example 320Gb of storage and a 1Tb portable drive can be picked up for reasonably sensible money now. Anyway I digress. I picked up a brand new net book on gumtree for the handsome of £100. The Spec of the Acer Aspire One is as follows :
Year: 2013
D-Link USB 2.0 7 Port Hub Unboxing & Important Mac Related Notes
Whilst I was still using my MacBook Pro I had also been using a USB Hub, although due to power restraints I had to upgrade to a Powered Hub. After a little research the D-Link 7 USB 2.0 Powered Hub seemed to be the way forward. I ordered it up and upon its arrival I plugged in it, stuck in in the MBP and now had an extra six USB 2.0 Hubs to play with.
On this machine it worked flawlessly, never missing a beat, my machine didn’t have USB3.0 so that wasn’t an issue and this hub happily powered four HDDs (2 of which were powered, 2 were portable). It also worked whilst syncing my iphone / ipad and camera. No complaints whatsoever on this machine.
This specific Hub also has two ports which are dedicated to charging. They are ports six and seven, and if your machine is powered down but the hub is still on (via the wall socket) you can use ports six or seven to charge your phone / tablet etc. It does not charge whilst the machine is in use.
For reference the machine this Hub was being used with was a Early 2011 MackBook Pro i7 2.2GHz (1Gb Graphics), 8Gb RAM, USB 2.0 with a Apple Cinema Display attached via Thunderbolt.
Then came the problems. I upgraded my computer to an iMac. It was at this point that this hub stopped working.
Again for reference the machine it was being used with was a late 2013 27″ iMac i7 3.5Ghz, (4Gb NVIDIA Graphics), 8Gb RAM, USB 3.0.
In this set up I used 3 of the 4 USB 3.0 ports on the rear of the machine to deal with three USB 3.0 hard drives (2 portable and one powered). The forth port was used to power the D-Link Hub. At this point only 2 hard drives were being used in it (both themselves powered desktop drives). This is when things started to fail. Both drives would mount momentarily, then disconnect with errors, mount -> disconnect and repeat! If you removed one drive the other mount successfully (either drive). Either drive would successfully mount via the USB ports to the rear of the machine.
For some reason when both drives were plugged into this port things failed. My only option was to bin the hub and try again with a new one. A quick Google search for USB hub problems with an iMac do tend to suggest that this is an issue with many hubs and the power they require as opposed to what they actually supply.
As expected customer service from Amazon was excellent and a new hub was ordered.
D-Link USB 2.0 Hub Gallery :
Griffin Protector Case Unboxing and Quick Thoughts
This isn’t so much of a review as more of an initial quick thought post.
I purchased this case as a quick installing silicon case for my iPhone 5s, at this stage such cases specific to the iPhone 5s are pretty scarce, so this case is one that has been in production since the iPhone 5. There is no functionality for the Touch ID fingerprint sensor, but other than that everything else is perfectly functional. All ports are accessible and the camera cut out works well, both with and without flash.
I won’t dwell on this case too much by simply stating the obvious, this is a silicon case, it has reinforced corners offering a good degree of drop and bump (or as it says on the packaging ‘jolt) protection.
It is face safe in that the edge of the case around the screen ensures the screen itself does not come in contact with a flat surface, should it be placed screen down on one.
I like silicon cases for the protection they offer, although like most such cases there are a few negatives.
– This case catches dust and dirt – a lot. Even in the unboxing images this is cleary evident, remember at this stage this case has been out of its packaging for mere seconds…
– With only one application there was evidence of stretching…
Spigen Tough Armor Case for Apple iPhone 5/5s Unboxing and Review
With the addition of the Touch ID Finger Print sensor on the new iPhone 5s it has meant that case developers are still working on the technology for my usual style of tough cases such as the Griffin Survivor, or Otterbox Armor / Defender Series. Obviously anything for the iPhone 5 that covers the home button will not be compatible with the new iPhone 5s’ Touch ID Sensor.
And like anyone with a new toy I want to play with it, so at this point covering the Home button isn’t the option I want to use. A quick search on the net then pointed my in the direction of a manufacturer called Spigen. I haven’t owned a Spigen case, nor seen or used one before so on taking some online reviews at their word I ordered myself a Spigen Tough Armor case. It was pretty expensive at £20 from Amazon, however if the reviews are correct it should be a £20 well spent.
As usual with Amazon it arrived quickly and on taking it out of the box I was pretty impressed. The case feels solid, and well manufactured. It looks good, the white version complementing the white iPhone well. The subtle branding of the case looks smart. The explanation of the tech behind it is basically impact diversion. The case takes a knock and the design of the case then spreads the forces from the impact throughout the case, keeping the forces away from your phone. The result is it shouldn’t break. Thats the theory anyway and the inside of the case has nice lines running from corner to corner, maybe this is an illustration of the force distribution or something. I think it looks like flight plans plotted on a flattened out globe, but anyway that hardly matters.
One thing I really did like about this case is that it comes with a serial number that you type into the Spigen website and it checks the authenticity of the case. As you will see from previous posts I have been a victim of counterfeiters before and this is a really nice idea by Spigen. Something other premium branded and high cost case makers should consider implementing,
The phone fits well into the case. The buttons are responsive, power and volume buttons are covered. The remaining ports and silent rocker switch are left open. There is a cut out on the rear for the shiney Apple logo to peek through, ye know just in case some one might not be aware you are using an iPhone.
G-Form Extreme Case for iPhone 5/5s – Unboxing and Review
Having been using my G-Form Case for my iPad since April 2012 and with it still going strong, (although a little dirtier than when it started life) I had a G-Form case ordered and sitting on my desk about 10 days before I even had my iPhone 5s. I had made an enquiry with G-Form to make sure it would fit (which it does) and that order was placed.
I am a huge G-Form fan, the iPad case I use is this one :
https://tbni.blog/2012/04/27/april-2012-review-g-form-extreme-sleeve-for-ipad-and-others-up-to-10/
I have had my iPad safely homed in it for 18 months and it has been in some strange and wonderful places. The iPad is still absolutely immaculate, the case although the yellow shows up any marks is still 100%, the material is uncreased, unfolded with no scuffs or tears. It is generally in a back pack but I have 100% faith in the job it is doing in there, after all back packs are not generally one of the safest nor more stable places on earth!
It is for these reasons that I decided to entrust my brand spanking new release day iPhone 5s to G-Form.
The case feels tough and strong with the reassuring ‘squigginess’ of the G-Form material. The case has a certain ‘tackiness’ or ‘stickiness’ that means you can put the case on the dash of your car and most of the time it will sit there, however it wouldn’t be as sticky as, for example, a Griffin Survivor. It slips into your pocket and out again with ease, something the pure silicon cases don’t. And it isn’t a dust magnet, so unlike the silicon cases when you put it into your pocket it doesn’t come out as if it has just done an impression of a vacuum in your pocket.
The case is face-safe, in that it has a raised lip sitting above the bezel of the screen, meaning you can place it face down on a desk and the screen won’t touch the desk.
All ports are open and plugging in the official Apple sync charging cable causes no issues, however the official Apple 9 pin to 30 pin connector won’t fit in, you would need the cabled adapter if this was an accessory you relied on.
The camera ports caused me no issues when taking photos, with or without the flash.
The full screen is open so using the Touch-ID fingerprint scanner on the iPhone 5s isn’t an issue.
Nook Simple Glow Light – UnBoxing
In my previous post I mentioned my Nook Simple Touch. A short time after I bought this Banes and Ernst dropped the price of the Nook Simple Glow Light to £49.
I had mentioned in the above post that one of the only faults with the Nook Simple Touch was the fact that without a source of light you couldn’t read from it. The Nook Simple Glow Light solves this problem.
The Glow Light is a back lit e-Reader and makes reading your Nook anywhere a complete possibility. It has been mentioned across the web that the back light isn’t great, however I think that it is important to point out that there is nothing else at this price point offering such a complete e-Reader experience. The light isn’t as uniform as that of the likes of a Kindle. However it is perfectly usable making reading in the dark a doddle!
My advice however is, if you are going for a Nook, go for the Glow Light, I didn’t think having a back light would have made much of a difference, however it only took me a matter of hours before I realised how handy it would actually be. The most obvious on is in bed. No back light means a bed side light at the minimum needs to be on. The just by lying on your back you arm is likely to cast a shadow on the screen blocking off part of that ‘page.’ The back light removes any such problems and at such an affordable price point you should definitely considering making the extra investment in the Nook Simple Glow Light.
Finally one other difference between the two is that the Nook Simple Glow Light comes supplied with a waller charger (plug & lead – the lead doubles up for data transfer purposes also). The Nook Simple Touch comes only with a charging and data transfer lead, if you don’t already have a compatible wall charger you will need to buy one or rely on charging through a USB port on your computer.
Nook Simple Touch UnBoxing
I already had a few options for readings whilst on the go, the first being books and magazines, but c’mon it is 2013 and actual books are heavy and awkward. I know to some people I have just committed a crime against humanity by stating that actual books are in some way less than the perfect item to place your eyes upon, but for me they are ideal. I had my iPad, iPhone, and more importantly with the mobile internet do we actually need to read one specific thing when there are millions of articles and pages to read online?
That opens up thousands more questions but I think it is safe to say that at some point most people will come across a title that they want to read, something that they have a genuine interest in and the internet just won’t cut it.
It is this point for me that an e-reader has a role. I am not a ‘big’ reader, I have probably read about 10 books in the last as many years however there are a few books that have appeared in the recent past that have made me look at a techy way of reading them.
So the iPad and iPhone are options, iBooks seems like a good solution too, and with Apple’s OSX Mavericks coming very soon with iBooks built in Apple seems to have a great solution. One main problem is the screen, the screen that is so perfect for so many things just doesn’t suit reading, then you have battery issues, an iPad lasts hours, an e-reader can last months.
Then along came the biggie, the price reduction in the Banes and Ernst Nook Simple Touch e-Reader. Coming in at £29 it made e-Readers very affordable. So I bought one, and they are great. With a program called Calibre you can convert many different eBook formats to be compatible with the Nook, it evens handles pdf files reasonably well (a little laggy, but completely functional). The biggest benefit in these e-Readers is the e-Ink, and the paper type display, it greatly reduces any eyestrain and makes reading from the tablet much easier on the eye. It is actually like reading from paper.
Books can be downloaded from the built in book store (accessed via wifi), or for some other source and transferred to the Nook, remembering Calibre you have a huge library of both free and paid books available.
The next big advantage is the battery life, one charge can last up to three months, say no more!
Late 2013 Apple iMac UnBoxing
About 3 months ago I had a great setup for my computer needs, namely an early 2011 i7 2.2 GHz MacBook Pro with a Apple Cinema display for my desktop requirements.
As my requirements changed I decided it was time for a change in the computer. Now as any Apple user knows, ‘when you go Mac, you don’t go back,’ so it was time to upgrade. The rumour mill was going mad online of a new iMac coming at the end of August. I seen it is a good time to change. So towards the end of July I sold my MBP and Cinema Display set up and squirrel’d the money away to patiently wait on the imminent product refresh from Apple.
The end of August came, and no iMac refresh came. Then along came the iPhone announcement and its subsequent release on 20th September 2013. No new iMac. During this time life without a computer was pretty tough. I did get myself a Netbook to cope with the emergencies and the iPad was worked hard until 24th September 2013 when Apple announced the iMac refresh : http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2013/09/24Apple-Updates-iMac.html
Finally time to get my hands on this beast. I decided to bit of maxing out of the specs in order to get a long life out of it. As it was a custom build it had to be ordered online, the delivery time was given to me as some stage on 11th October 2013.
It was this date that it arrived. Delivered by UPS, whom I found to be bound down by red tape in relation to their deliveries but that is an entirely different story!
Anyway the iMac was here and specc’d as follows :
Specifications
- 3.5GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.9GHz
- 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2X4GB
- 1TB Fusion Drive
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5
- Magic Trackpad
- Apple Wireless Keyboard (English) & User’s Guide
- Accessory Kit
So with this spec I decided to max out the processor, the graphics and take on a Fusion Drive (some nifty technology that combines a standard spinning hard drive and some flash memory – the storage capacity of a HDD, with the speed of an SSD). I stuck with 8Gb of RAM as this is user upgradable, and much cheaper to do yourself than having it done in the factory.
Having only been using the machine for a week I am already hugely impressed, the Fusion Drive seems as capable as the SSD I had in my MBP, the speed of regular tasks is supreme, I have done a little video editing (for the FAKE Otterbox video posted 2 posts earlier) and the speed of conversion was breath taking in comparison to what I was used too. I have a couple of USB 3.0 external drives connected and they are super sharp in relation to the USB 2 speeds I had been working with. The 27″ screen needs no comment other than ‘STUNNING!’
As yet I haven’t really pushed any aspect of this machine, I am looking forward to playing about with some GoPro footage to see how the graphics card handles some HD editing. It was this sort of tasking that my old machine had started to splutter.
So in what is ultimately a very quick initial thoughts posting I am massively impressed with this machine, it was expensive, but I can see this being an investment that I will continue to enjoy for many years.
Oh and of course I got AppleCare, something I have never had to use thankfully, but anyone who I know that has can not sing its praises highly enough.
G-Shock DW6900-CS-1ER : The Zombie Slayer – UnBoxing
Casio G-Shock DW6900-CS-1ER:
G-Shock Classic Watch featuring Shock resistance, 200M WR, countdown timer, 1/100 sec. stopwatch and auto-calendar. Black resin band digital watch with green face.
This model has affectionately been named amongst the G-Shock Community as the ‘Zombie Slayer’ and with the increasing popularity in all things ‘undead’ this watch has become a cult classic in its own right.
I picked this watch up in a sale, the price was far too good to miss, however the only issue from this being a sale item was that it came in a generic Casio box rather than the rather cool looking G-Shock Casing, forgetting that the watch arrived in perfect condition and it now has a good spot in my G-Shock Collection!
Tech Specs:
Shock Resistant
200 Meter Water Resistant
EL Backlight with Afterglow
Flash Alert
Flashes with buzzer that sounds for alarms, hourly time signal, countdown timer time-up alarm
1/100 second stopwatch
Measuring capacity: 00’00”00-59’59”99 (for the first 60 minutes)
1:00’00-23:59’59 (after 60 minutes)
Measuring unit: 1/100 second (for the first 60 minutes)
1 second (after 60 minutes)
Measuring mode: Elapsed time, split time, 1st-2nd place times
Countdown timer
Measuring unit: 1 second
Countdown range: 24 hours
Countdown start time setting range: 1 second to 24 hours
(1-second increments, 1-minute increments and 1-hour increments)
Other: Auto-repeat
Multi-function alarm
Hourly time signal
Full auto-calendar (pre-programmed until the year 2039)
12/24 hour formats
Accuracy: +/- 15 seconds per month
Battery CR2016
Approx. battery life: 2 years
Module 1289/3230
Fake OtterBox Defender for iPhone 5s Damages Phone.
Following on from my last post I put together this very quick video illustrating the damage that the FAKE Otterbox Defender for iPhone 5s did to my phone.
Thankfully this damage was able to be cleaned off, thanks solely (in my opinion) to the protective shield I had installed. I can’t imagine cleaning this off the aluminium would have been in any way easy!
[youtube=http://youtu.be/SyBNsnVzsj8]
My advice on this one is simply, avoid any FAKE Otterbox Defender cases like the plague!