Recently the battery on my 2007 17” MacBook Pro decided to uncontrollably expand. Thankfully I removed the battery from my machine before it decided to mimic a six-month pregnancy.

When this happened I brought my machine and battery to my local Apple Store and was told since the machine was no longer under Apple Care coverage that they could not swap the battery and I would need to buy a replacement. Currently the Apple branded 17” battery runs $129. The Genius did offer to take off $30 off the price making it $99.

Before accepting this offer I decided to research alternative options and the most promising one was the NewerTech NuPower Battery for all MacBook Pro 17″ non-Unibody 71 Watt which offers 4.4% more capacity, The price was $119 for this larger capacity battery or $89 for a battery that was comparable to the Apple 68 Watt branded version.

The NewerTech NuPower Battery for all MacBook Pro 17″ non-Unibody comes in a white cardboard box with an image of a MacBook Pro and the battery. On the back is a listing of Specs and a Model ID/Info compatibility list.

Inside the box we find just the battery padded in Styrofoam; nothing else is included. The OWC site has a link for recommended conditioning for your initial use of the NuPower Battery.

Aesthetically the NuPower Battery looks identical to the Apple version. The exterior has the machined aluminum coating with the power indicator lights and test button. The only distinguishable difference is the label on the inner surface of the battery otherwise they both have the same dimensions and weight.

Specifications:

NewerTech NuPower Battery for all MacBook Pro 17″ non-Unibody

A Perfect-fit Solution
NuPower batteries are engineered to perfectly complement the fit and finish of your Mac notebook as well as offer full compatibility with applicable OEM sleep and power reduction modes.

Powerful and Responsible
NuPower battery upgrade solutions are environmentally responsible and feature RoHS certification to be free of lead, mercury, cadmium, PBBs, and PBDE. We also offer a comprehensive recycling program for your old battery, as well as an industry-leading 1-year warranty.

Newer Makes Your Mac Better Than New!
When high-performance, quality,and longevity are your battery upgrade criteria, NuPower is your answer. NuPower batteries are designed to meet and exceed factory specifications, so now you can listen to more music, watch more videos, and get more work done between recharges. To ensure your confidence and satisfaction, these highest-quality batteries are backed by free, award-winning US-based support and a one-year, 48-hour or less turnaround warranty.

Battery Specs:
-Lithium-Ion Technology
-71 Watt-Hour
-RoHS certified
-1yr NewerTech Warranty

Price: $119.99

To prepare the NuPower battery I followed the directions on the OWC website. First I charged the battery overnight for 12 hours uninterrupted. Then I ran my machine on battery power until it was total discharged then recharged the battery using the MacBook Pro AC adapter.

Here is a comparison of the NuPower battery and an Apple model using the battery health monitoring software – Coconut Battery. 6600 mAh is the standard capacity for a 17″ MacBook Pro Non Unibody battery and as we can see the NuPower one tops out at over 7300 mAh.

With the NuPower battery I was able to get around 4-4 1/2 hours out of my MacBook Pro that has an SSD and additional hard drive in place is a definite battery drainer. This provided my MacBook Pro with a slightly improved battery life. So overall I was happy with the functionality of the NuPower Battery.

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Conclusion:

For those folks with older Apple laptops the NewerTech NuPower Battery is an excellent alternative to the Apple branded one. The NewerTech versions offer similar capacity and function while saving the buyer a few dollars in the process. They also offer slightly larger capacity ones that cost the same as the lower capacity Apple models.

Pros:
+Cheaper than Apple brand laptop batteries
+Looks like the Apple brand
+Works as advertised

Cons:
-None

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of NewerTech NuPower Battery for all MacBook Pro 17" non-Unibody is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

As usual we’ll start with the packaging, the case is packaged well with styrofoam and plastic around it for protection.

Then here’s the case, it’s mostly black with blue highlights around the drive bays.

On the front of the case you’ll see three regular 5.25” bays and one that can be used for a 3.5” device like a card reader. Below the bays you’ll find a meshed are, behind which is the front 200mm fan which has blue LEDs in it, and then the Thermaltake logo is there as well.

Moving to the top of the case you’ll find power and reset buttons along with eSATA, USB 2.0, USB 3.0 and audio connectors. One of the great features of the Overseer case is the addition of the SATA dock that’s located on the top as well.

Here’s the view of the top of the case behind the control panel, it’s just mesh and there’s one 200mm fan installed towards the back with space for another one. This fan has blue LEDs in it as well. The top section has an interesting ‘fin’ look to it, I like it.

The right side of the Overseer is just plain black, but you’ll notice the panel sort of bulges out, this is to provide extra room so you can stuff all of your cables back behind the motherboard tray and out of the way and yet still get the side panel back on with ease.

On the left side of the case you’ll see a small window and space for another 200mm fan if you desire more cooling.

Moving around the back of the case you’ll find the normal stuff here, I/O port, PCI slots and then there’s holes for liquid cooling and a security lock for your peripherals like mouse and keyboard towards the top. The side panels are held on with thumbscrews so you can take them off and put them back on easily.

Under the power supply is a removable dust filter, it just slides in and out for ease of cleaning it.

Here’s the bottom of the case, it has nice tall rubberized non-slip feet to help promote airflow, and here you can see the removable filter. There’s also a space for another fan and the filter extends to that fan as well.

Here’s the front bezel removed, you can get a better look at the 200mm fan and the bays. The bezel just pops on and off with ease.

Moving on here’s the right side of the case, or the back of the motherboard tray with the side panel removed. Here you’ll find plenty of rubberized slots for routing your wires through and a nice large cut-out where the CPU would be located so you can quickly and easily swap CPU coolers if needed. You’ll also notice that the inside of the case is painted black to match the outside.

Then here’s the view with the let panel removed:

The 5.25” bays are tool-less, they use a spring lock latch system.

The hard drive cage is located beneath of course and can hold five drives. The drive trays can be used with 3.5” or 2.5” drives.

Here’s a couple of the racks, one upside down and one right-side up so you can see them better.

Here’s the bottom of the case, you can see the filter here and where the optional fan can be installed.

Then here’s the back section where the PCI slots are and you can see the 120mm fan installed for you, there’s no LEDs in this one.

Here’s the inside view of the top of the Overseer showing the 200m fan installed:

Of course you’ll find an assortment of wires for connections to your motherboard and USB 2.0 and UBS 3.0 headers, there’s also power connectors for the fans and the lighting effects on the front of the case which I’ll show you later in the review.

Finally there’s a small assortment of accessories for you including a CPU power extender and Molex to 3pin fan conenctors. In the bag is the assortment of screws along with several reusable cable ties.

Specifications:

Overseer RX-I 

Features:   
-Pulsating lighting effect.
-E-sports gaming style front bezel.
-USB 3.0 SuperSpeed via internal 20 pin connector.
-Top-mounted HDD Docking Station enables blazing fast file transfer and effortless hot-swap capability.
-Black coating makes stylish inside look.
-Bottom-placed PSU design for better and easier installation.
-Supports most advanced AMD & NVIDIA graphic cards up to 12.5"/32cm (e.g. —-AMD Radeon HD 6990 & nVidia Geforce GTX 590).

Specs:
Case Type: Full Tower
Material: SECC
Front Bezel Material: Combination of plastic and high air flow mesh

Color:      
Interior: Black
Exterior: Black

Side Panel: Solid with Transparent Window

Motherboard Support      
9.6” x 9.6” (Micro ATX)
12” x 9.6” (ATX)
12” x 13” (Extend ATX)

5.25" Drive Bay: 3
Ext. 3.5" Drive Bay: By using 5.25" to 3.5" Converter
Int. 3.5" Drive Bay: 5
Expansion Slots: 8

Front I/O Ports:      
USB 3.0 x 2 (via internal header)
USB 2.0 x 2
eSATA connector x 1
Mic & Speaker (support AC’97 & HD Audio)

Cooling System      
- Front (intake) :
  200 x 200 x 30 mm Blue LED (600~800 RPM, 12~14 dBA)
- Rear (exhaust) :
  120 x 120 x 25 mm TurboFan, 1000rpm, 16dBA
- Top(exhaust) :
  200 x 200 x 30 mm Blue LED fan x 1 (600~800rpm, 13~15dBA)
2 x  200 x 200 x 30 mm (optional)
- Bottom(intake) :
  120 x 120 x 25 mm x 1 (optional)
- Side(intake) :
  200 x 200 x 30 mm x 1 (optional)

Liquid Cooling Capable: Yes

Power Supply Supported: Standard ATX PSII Power Supply

Dimension (H*W*D): 535 x 220 x 580 mm / 21.1 x 8.7 x 22.8 inch
Net Weight: 10.3 kg / 22.7 lb
Security Lock: For Peripherals Only
Application: Suitable for gaming, enthusiast, DIY and modding

MSRP: $139.99
Price: $129.99 (from Amazon at time of review)

Next up would be installing my system in the case. The first thing I did was install the hard drives in the racks, this involves four screws through the frame through the silicone vibration dampeners into the hard drive.

Next of course was the rest of the system. I found there’s plenty of room to move around, it’s a nice big case.

I got a lot of use from the wire management during the installation, it is really nice having this type of setup in a case.

On the back of the motherboard tray is a slot so you can route the CPU power connection through to the motherboard, it was a tight fit but it worked. The case is tall, so you need to have a long power cable though for this to work, or get some sort of extender. Thermaltake was kind enough to include a power extender for you though, so you won’t have to buy one!

Speaking of the power connector, I found here’s plenty of space at the top of the case to work. I easily got the connection for the power in and it was easy to get the motherboard screws in as well thanks to all of the extra room.

I used the built-in 3.5” bay for my card reader, this way I didn’t have to use a 5.25” to 3.5” adapter which is nice.

Here’s my four hard drives installed, once they’re in the rack they just slide into the cage and lock into place.

Here’s everything installed, you can see the ATI 4890 I have fits fine in the Overseer with a lot of room to spare and thanks to the built-in wire management the inside looks rather clean and neat.

The back of the motherboard tray is a different story though, it’s a mess and I don’t care as it’s not seen. The Overseer case offers a lot of room for wires behind the mobo tray so it doesn’t have to be neat back there and I had no problems getting the side panel back on.

The front and top 200mm fans have blue LEDs in them making for a nice appearance in the dark. the Fans are also very quiet, the case is sitting less than three feet from me and I really can’t hear anything.

On the control panel at the top of the case is what looks like a dragon that lights up blue as well, it blinks very slowly, it’s not really a blink, it’s more of a fade though.

The top fan light does illuminate the inside of the case slightly, you can see it though the window somewhat. In the dark it’s more noticeable though.

As I mentioned already, the fans are nice and quiet, you can barely hear them even up close and they do a very good job at keeping things cool.

A couple small things to note about dust though. The side panel has a space for another 200mm fan, and there’s a filter in place but after about a week that filter gets full of dust and doesn’t look to great. I was thinking of cutting a piece of Plexiglas in the shape of the hole and putting it in there so the dust issue would be eliminated and then you could see more into the case.

The next issue with dust is the side window, it collects dust as well, both on the outside and inside. I’m guessing it’s due to static that it’s doing this but it’s not very pretty. The dust on the outside can easily be wiped off but to clean the inside you’ll have to remove the side panel of course and that can be a pain. This isn’t an issue if you case is under your desk or out of site, but I have mine on my desk so I see it all of the time and I don’t care for it much.

Something else I noticed that I found rather odd is that the hard drives can be heard through the case but only at certain angles. If you’re positioned more towards the front of the case they can’t be heard, but if you’re off to the side then you can hear them accessing. It’s just weird  really.

Conclusion:
The Thermaltake Overseer RX-I is an awesome case, just plain awesome. It’s big and makes a bold statement, it’s the kind of case I’m happy to have sitting on my desk, one that’s well made and looks great, but it’s on the inside where it counts and the Overseer has plenty of room for all of your stuff to fit without any issues. This case could be for gamers, it sure looks like a gamer case, but it doesn’t have to be, it can work for anyone and fit in anywhere.

The Overseer is full of great features that I think everyone can appreciate, especially the built-in SATA dock right there on the top of the case for easy access.

There are a few very small issues with the case, but the good things very much outweigh the bad, so this is a case that I can easily recommend to you.

Pros:
+Lots of room inside
+Plenty of room for wires on back of mobo tray
+Plenty of wire routing options
+Quiet and cool
+Looks great
+Built-in SATA dock

Cons:
-Depending on the angle, hard drives can be audible
-Side fan filter collects a lot of dust
-Side window collects dust

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Thermaltake Overseer RX-I Full Tower PC Case is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Verbatim recently announced at this year’s CES the line of SSD products which include both SATA II and SATA III versions. Today we will be looking at the SATA II 2.5 inch SSD upgrade kit. It is designed to replace hard drives in it either notebook or desktop configurations. It includes preloaded cloning software making the transition from hard drive to SSD seamless.

The Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD Upgrade Kit comes in colored cardboard box with the drive pictured on the front. On the sides we see the system requirements, specifications, package contents and warranty info and a description of the product on the back.

Opening the package we find the SATA II SSD, a 3.5” driver adapter plate, two USB cables, a 2.5” drive enclosure, mounting screws, users guide and Molex power cable.

The Verbatim SSD is enclosed in a black metal housing with a green blue-and-white label indicating the drive capacity. It has an SATA II interface with advertised read speeds of 270MB/sec and 225MB/sec write speeds; a MTBF rating of one million hours means your PC/Mac, or Laptop will probably go before this drive will. In addition the SSD is SMART capable and offers TRIM support for Windows 7 and OS X Lion users.

Verbatim ships the SSD drive preinstalled into the base of the 2.5” drive enclosure that features a USB 2.0 connection. This enclosure allows transferring the data to the SSD and then re-using your old 2.5” internal hard drive as an external one. Installed on the SSD is a copy of NTI Echo, which is a Windows, based cloning software making it easy to copy your data onto the new SSD.

The enclosure secures the Verbatim SSD with three clips on each side. The mini USB to SATA connector slides out of the enclosure with the SSD drive; so theoretically you could transfer data to the SSD without installing it into the enclosure.

The top of the enclosure snaps down onto the base securely locking the drive within. The snap closures actually make it difficult to re-open the enclosure unlike the Kingston enclosure solution which simply slides on and off with a locking mechanism.

For those wishing to install this SSD into their desktop machines a 3.5" drive adapter plate is also included.

Overall Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD Upgrade Kit is pretty similar to most other SSD upgrade kits, nothing fancy just what’s required to get the job done.

Specifications:

Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD Upgrade Kit – 128GB

Rugged, fast and quiet, Verbatim’s SATA II Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) with Upgrade Kit provides the latest hard drive replacement storage solution for notebook and desktop PCs. Offering data read speeds up to 270MB/sec* Verbatim SATA II SSD drives are ideal for users that demand maximum performance in data storage and computer efficiency, while the do-it-yourself upgrade kit makes drive swapping a breeze. Verbatim’s SATA II Internal SSDs handle large amounts of data quickly and improve system responsiveness, extending notebook battery life and maximize computer performance. The internal SSD operates silently and provides faster system boot-up, application launch and shutdown times. Verbatim’s SATA II Internal SSD is S.M.A.R.T. capable and offers TRIM support for Windows 7, along with a 1500G Shock Rating The package includes preloaded NTI Echo cloning software, a 3.5” drive bay adapter plate and Molex power cable (for use in optional desktop installations), mounting screws, USB cable, and a 2.5” drive enclosure to allow reuse of the user’s original hard drive as a USB attached external storage device. All Verbatim Solid State Drives are backed by a 3-year limited warranty.

• Includes preloaded Clone software, a 3.5” drive bay adapter plate and power cable, mounting screws, USB cable, and a 2.5” drive enclosure to reclaim and reuse original hard drive
• Everything in one box for do-it-yourself notebook or desktop installation.
• SATA II interface offers speeds up to 3GB/sec
• Up to 270MB/sec. read speed and 225MB/sec write speeds
• Reliable Solid-State design features 1500G shock rating
• Low power consumption conserves laptop battery life
• MTBF rating of 1 million hours
• Backed by a 3-year limited warranty

Contents: Solid State SATA II, loaded Eco NTI cloning software, 3.5” drive adapter plate and Molex power cable (for use in desktop installations optional), mounting screws, 2 USB cable, 2.5” drive enclosure, users guide.

For testing the Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD Upgrade Kit was installed into the following system:

CPU: Intel Core i7 2600K

Motherboard: Asus P8P67 PRO

Memory: 8GB Mushkin DDR3 1300

Video Card: Galaxy 460GTX

Hard Drive: Western Digital 250GB 7200RPM, Samsung 1 TB 7200 RPM

PSU: Ultra X-Finity 1000 Watt Power Supply

Upon installation the Windows 7 64 system recognized the drive as model: SATA SSD 128 GB with a drive capacity of 120 GB. The firmware version was identified as S5FAM012.

Using this information I tried to determine if this SSD was a rebranded model. Unfortunately my research on the web yielded little answer to that question. Speaking with my Verbatim contact I found out this SSD uses the Phison PS3105-S5 SSD controller which is found in the Torqx 2 SSD.

According to Benchmarkreviews.com this controller " supports 20/30/40nm MLC/SLC Large-Block Toggle Hi-Speed NAND flash memory with up to 32 chips, and features a build-in 28/32/48-bit hardware ECC circuit (BCH)." Verbatim saves the Sandforce controller for their SATA III SSDs.

For testing the Verbatim SSD was pitted up against an Intel X25-M SSD 80 GB with 250MB/s read and 70MB/s write speeds, a Kingston SSDNow V Series 30GB write speeds of 30 MB/s and read speeds of 180 MB/s and a Kingston Hyper X SSD 240 GB (SATA III) with write speeds of 510 MB/s and read speeds of 555 MB/s.

Benchmarking was performed with Anvil Storage Utilities Beta 11, ATTO Disk Benchmark and CrystalDiskMark 3.0.1 x64 and AS-SSD 1.6.4. One important thing to note is most companies use the ATTO benchmark to list their advertised speeds as these other benchmarking program tend to show results that are more “real world” like.

Thus starting with ATTO we see the Verbatim SSD hits their advertised speeds right on the nose with the other drives matching up to their specs pretty closely as well.

Moving to Anvil Storage Utilities using the 4MB Sequential Speed test we see the Verbatim is once again close to its advertised speeds. Measuring the IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second) the Verbatim comes in at half the speed of the SATA III based HyperX SSD, as it rightfully should.

Here are the results for Crystal Disk Mark and AS-SSD which run similar benchmarks.

For those wishing to copy over their system to the Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD the NTI Echo is a straightforward cloning program. Select your source and destination and then grab a snack while the copy process occurs. Then swap your SSD for your hard drive and you should be set.

Of course if you are going to use the Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD in a Mac you’ll need to copy the data using some other program like Carbon Copy Cloner. I decided to replace my sluggish 2008 MacBook Pro’s hard drive with the Verbatim SSD.

Since I was running Snow Leopard which does not support TRIM on non Apple approved SSDs, I needed to activate the TRIM feature using TRIM Enabler.

Benchmarking the MacBook Pro was done using AJA System Test which provided some disappointing results as the Read speeds were lower at 185 MB/s and the Writes were in the 50s. I did not Secure Erase the SSD before swapping it into the MacBook Pro which may be the issue. I will have do some further investigating although the MacBook Pro is still appreciably faster.

Conclusion:

If you are looking to upgrade your PC or Mac to an SSD system then the Verbatim SATA II 2.5" SSD Upgrade Kit is not a bad way to get that job done. The Verbatim SSD is TRIM enabled helping it to function at peak performance while running a Windows 7 system.

Currently the Verbatim SSD 128 GB bundle can be found for less than $200 on the web which makes it priced in line with SSDs with similar specs.

The Verbatim SSD performs up to its advertised speeds out of the box and comes with cloning software for Windows users preinstalled on the drive itself. The kit has everything you’ll need to make a seamless transition to the solid-state drive world.

Pros:
+Supports TRIM
+Kit allows desktop and laptop installation
+Can re-use old 2.5 Hard Drive with enclosure
+Silent operation
+Includes Windows cloning software

Cons:
-Not the fastest SATA II SSD in market

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Verbatim SATA II 2.5" 128gb SSD Upgrade Kit is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

It’s Angry Birds so you expect it to be boxed in a fun way and it is. The box is made to look like a wooden shipping crate with a window on the front showing the Red Bird. The window actually has a screen pattern in it, sort of like chicken wire.

When I first saw these I thought they were small, but this thing is huge, I was very much surprised by the size of it. Here’s a regular size blu-ray movie box next to the Angry Birds box for size comparison:

When you open the box you’ll be greeted with the instructions for using the speaker and for unpacking the Red Bird, you’ll also notice a male to male audio cable.

Here’s everything unpacked:

The audio cable is red to match the bird and it’s about 41 inches long.

Included is what you might consider a dock, but it’s really a stand for your phone or MP3 player. It follows the Angry Birds theme and resembles wood. On the front is a part that look like broken wood that sticks up to hold your device in place, on the back edge is a rubber strip to keep it from sliding.

On the bottom are rubber feet and a part that slides out to make the platform more stable for larger devices.

Included is a power adapter that can be used in many countries around the world, just pop them off and on.

And here’s the Red Bird himself, and yes he looks angry. The bird is plastic, as with most things, and it’s heavy, much heavier than I expected it to be, and it feels solidly  and quality made.

Here’s a few more views for you. There are speakers on the sides and bottom of the bird, it has two mid-range and a sub-woofer.

On the back you’ll find the control panel with a knob for bass, a power button, power input jack, audio input jack and the volume knob, under those is the bass port.

On the bottom of the bird you’ll find a large rubber pad to keep that bird from flying off somewhere.

Specifications:

Gear4 Angry Birds Speaker – Red Bird

Love Angry Birds? Complete your Angry Birds collection with this official red bird speaker from Gear4.

Compatible with any device featuring a 3.5mm jack
The Red Bird speaker has universal compatibility with any device featuring a 3.5mm jack, meaning you can use it with your phone, laptop, PC and even tablet. The speaker is also portable meaning you can take the Angry Birds style with you wherever you go.

Comes complete with a stand for your playback device
As the Red Bird speaker is universal, it also comes with a universal stand for your media device such as phone, music player or tablet.

Officially licensed Angry Birds product
Gear4 has been commissioned with creating the official Angry Birds range, as a result the speaker is made from the highest quality materials and oozes quality.

Price: £49.99 / $78.94

Our friends are Mobile Fun sent this over for review and you can find all kinds of phone accessories in their little shop.

So to test it I listened to music with a couple devices I own. You just have to plug it in and here I noticed the first small flaw, the power cord is rather short. I plugged it into an extension cord right under my desk and the cord barely reached to have the Red Bird on my desk. So I think the cord could be a lot longer, at least twice as long would be good.

The first one I used was my Zune HD.

The Zune has its audio connection on the bottom so it had to sit sideways on the stand.

Then I used it with a larger device, my HTC Titan and it could stand up since its audio connection is on the top:

Here it is in the stand:

I didn’t take a picture of it, but it did hold my Android 10” tablet in the stand, I just had to extend the back section out to stabilize it.

The sound is very good, and wow this thing can get very loud. It does get a bit distorted at full volume but you just need to lower the bass level a bit and it clears up. There is a lot of bass in this bird (that sounds weird) and it was vibrating my desk, I had to turn it down a bit.

The Red Bird is simple to use, and the sound is very good really.

On a side note about this bird, my dog doesn’t care for it, it’s funny and weird at the same time. When I first got it I had it sitting up on a shelf and she would sit there staring at it and barking and growling at it. After a couple weeks she stopped the barking but she still doesn’t like it, when I bring it down she gets away and then walks over to it very tentatively to sniff it and then backs away to a safe distance.

The price is a bit high, but it’s an officially licensed product and a novelty, so prices are usually higher on these types of things.  Is it worth it? Maybe, if you’re an Angry Birds fan then yes it’s worth it.

Conclusion:
So it’s a speaker, it’s an angry looking bird, it’s an Angry Bird speaker. Is it worth it, I have to say yes, especially if you’re an Angry Birds fan. I like Angry Birds sure, but I’m not a fanatic about it, but my kids are and they just love this thing. I think they were more excited than I was when I opened the box.

The Red Bird Angry Bird speaker looks good and it’s very well made, well worth the cost in terms of design and build quality. The sound is very good as well, I think most people will be more than happy with the sound that this bird makes.

The one small issue I came across is the power cord, I think it’s just too short really.

If you or anyone you know is an Angry Bird fan I think this would go over very well as a gift for them or yourself.

Pros:
+Works with any device with standard audio jack
+Very loud
+Comes with adapters for world use
+Decent sounding

Cons:
-Rather expensive
-Power cord could be longer

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Gear4 Angry Birds Speaker – Red Bird is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

These ports can be tied up quickly with a hard drive used as a Time Machine backup, an iPod/iPhone charging cable and a printer. This means attaching additional USB-based devices requires reaching around back of the iMac and removing one of the connected devices and plugging in the new one. A royal pain in the you know what for most folks.

One way to remedy this is to attach a USB hub. The folks from OWC/NewerTechnology were kind enough to send over their 7 port USB 2.0 Hub with 3.5 amp power supply for review. Each port has a full 500 mA per port meaning devices such as scanners, optical drives, external drives, digital cameras and external drives can be simultaneously connected to your PC/Mac via the Hub.

The Hub features USB 2.0 speeds of up to 60 MB/S and is backwards compatible with USB 1.1 as well as working with USB 3.0 devices. The Hub can daisy chain up 127 USB devices using additional hubs.

The 7 Port USB 2.0 Hub with 3.5 Amp Power Supply comes in a clear plastic blister package with the Hub visualized on the front. On the back is a list of features and specs along with pictures of the front and back of the hub on the sides of the package.

Opening the package reveals the 7 port USB hub along with a 3.5 amp power adapter and a double shielded USB 2.0/1.1 A-B connecting cable.

The hub is composed of gray plastic with a silver aluminum band in the middle with the NewerTechnology logo on top. On the front are five vertical USB ports on the back are two additional USB ports along with a USB 2.0 uplink type (B) port for connecting the hub to your PC or Mac; adjacent to this port is the AC input.

Specifications:

7 Port USB 2.0 Hub with 3.5 Amp Power Supply

Connect and power up to seven USB devices with Plug and Play ease.

Connect, organize, charge, and sync
your digital accessories and devices!
Connect, organize, and power up to seven devices hassle free with the NewerTech Seven Port USB 2.0 Powered Hub. By offering a full 500mA per port, this compact powered hub enables you to connect power hungry devices like external drives, scanners, printers, optical drives, and digital cameras simultaneously to a Mac or PC. And with seven individual ports, you now can enjoy fast access for temporary devices like thumb drives, media readers and even USB chargeable devices like iPods and iPhones.

Its space-saving design frees up desktop clutter and the need for multiple AC power adapter cords while providing seamless connection and data transfer rates up to 60MB/s with all USB 2.0/1.1 devices. Add additional hubs to support connecting up to 127 USB devices.

• Plug and Play…no drivers to install!
• One USB 2.0 Uplink Type "B" port for connecting to Mac or PC and seven USB 2.0/1.1 ports.
• Type "A" ports for connecting devices.
• Over-current detection and protection.
• Supports "hot swapping" of USB devices.
• User-friendly and ergonomic design.
• Durable aluminum enclosure for rugged mobile use.

Compatible with USB 2.0/1.1 devices

Connect to additional hubs to support up to 127 full-speed or low-speed devices

Supports data transfer rates up to 60MB/s

Supplies 500mA power to each USB port (including power adapter)

Dimensions: 3.125″ x 1.8125″ x 0.8125″

Weight: 11.3 oz. (with all accessories)

Installation of the USB hub involves plugging in the power adapter into an AC outlet and the other end of the cord into the hub itself. Next attach the included USB cable to the hub and your PC or Mac. Your machine should automatically detect the presence of the hub and you are ready to use the device.

For testing I use the Hub with both my 2011 27” Core i5 2.7 GHz iMac and my Core i7 2600K PC. The 7-port USB 2.0 hub works as advertised as it easily connects and powers all manner of USB without any noticeable strain on my PC or Mac. At one point I had two external drives, a scanner, a USB headset and three USB thumb drives all connected at once. Using the Hub with an iMac was a pleasure as there was no need to reach behind my Apple computer.

To test the transfer speeds of the hub, I used ATTO Benchmark with some Kingston USB 3.0 Drives to see whether there was a performance hit. Looking at the graphs you can see the hub has minimal effect on the USB devices performance.

Conclusion:

If you are looking for an affordable way to add USB connections to your desktop PC, laptop or Mac than the 7 Port USB 2.0 Hub with 3.5 Amp Power Supply from NewerTechnology is a great solution. This hub is very affordable coming in at just under $20. Other hubs in this price range usually only offer four USB ports, so seven ports for this price is a very good deal. Since it is a powered hub it can work with pretty much any USB device without putting a strain on the host system. I know I will be using this hub on my iMac for a very long time.

Pros:
+Powered USB hub
+7 USB ports
+Low profile

Cons:
-None

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of NewerTech 7 Port USB 2.0 Hub with 3.5 Amp Power Supply is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Specifications:

iSesamo

The ultimate repair tool for electronic device repair
iSesamo makes opening electronics simple. This must-have tool for repair pros and DIYers is a thin, flexible and resilient steel blade that easily slides between panes of the most common electronic devices to pop them open in an instant. Whether you’re changing a battery, a display LCD, touch screen or internal components, iSesamo makes accessing those components quick and painless. Perfect for iPods, iPhones, iPads, Blackberrys, and many others.

Unlike plastic spudgers, which are often too thick and only good for a single use, iSesamo’s ultra-thin steel design allows for easy entry into microscopic seams and can be used over and over. It comes with a clear, flexible, rubber handle for maximum grip and precision handling as you work.

Open with Care
As always, when working with expensive electronics like the iPhone, iPod or iPad, exercise extreme care as long-term damage can result from excessive force, jarring or scraping. This tool is made of metal and can scratch the casing or glass of your device.

Features:
-Professional grade stainless steel construction ensures repeated use
-Ultra-thin design allows for easy opening of numerous devices
-Includes clear, flexible rubber handle
-Ideal for pros and DIYers
-Makes short work of electronics repairs

Material: Professional grade stainless steel & flexible rubber handle
Warranty: One Year

Price: $9.99

more review text

There’s no fancy packaging with the iSesamo, just a plastic bag and a cardboard insert.

The insert is actually a basic set of instructions for opening things like iPods and iPhones, it also tells you a little bit more about the iSesamo.

The iSesamo is essentially a thin piece of metal with a rubber cover over about 75% of it.

One end is tapered, you can’t see it in the pictures but it’s very tapered actually to almost a razor thin and sharp edge at the point. The end is very sharp really, if you push hard enough it will cut you.

The other end is the same width all the way and it’s a little bit thicker than the tapered end. It’s made for tougher jobs really.

For testing I opened things, things I probably shouldn’t have but I did it anyway and it worked like a charm!

I used it with one of my tablets because I was messing with rooting it and flashing firmware and it kind of froze so I opened it up to see if the battery was removable and I found it wasn’t sadly. Eventually I got the tablet turned off, but the point is that the iSesamo made short work of opening the tablet up, it was quick and easy using this little tool.

The rubber covering works very well to make sure you keep your grip while using the iSesamo.

Bottom line is that it works, and it works great.

One minor complaint would be there’s no case. The iSesamo is thin and I would worry about just tossing it into my toolbox with other tools as it might chip or dull the tip. A case would be very nice to have for this little tool to protect it.

Conclusion:
The iSesamo is a very simple product but yet it’s one that I now think I just can’t live without. This little tool is just so very useful that I can’t believe I‘ve never had one until now.

The iSesamo is a must-have tool for any DIYer out there. If you fix things or just like to take things apart then you need the iSesamo.

Pros:
+Works great
+Inexpensive
+Reusable

Cons:
-A carrying case would be nice

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of NewerTech iSesamo Repair Tool is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Insert the rest of the review here..

The LabelWorks LW-400 comes in a stylish looking box with pictures and info on it.

Epson was kind enough to send me over three more cartridges to go with the LW-400 for this review. They sent me metallic, blue plaid and a blue colored iron on cartridge. You’ll see more of these later in the review, I’ve tried them all out.

The LW-400 comes packaged well, a box inside of a box really.

Once you unpack everything you’ll find the LW-400 itself, a cartridge of white labels and plenty of documentation including a very handy sheet that shows all of the graphics.

Here’s what the actual cartridges look like:

Here’s the LW-400 itself, it’s rather large with a full keypad and an LCD display that includes a backlight.

The LCD display is where you’ll create your labels. Around the display and indicators for things like font size, styles and other information. The display will have a marker on it next to the appropriate symbol.

Below the display, and above the keyboard you’ll see the basic control panel with a directional pad and buttons for fonts, styles, borders, settings and more.

The keyboard is a QWERTY style to make like a bit easier or more familiar for everyone. There’s a even a full number line for you. On the bottom is a space bar with shift keys too allowing you to access the special characters and capitalization.

On the bottom of the LW-400 is a port for an external adapter, it uses batteries normally but you can buy an adapter if you want.

On the right side is a very large green button with a picture of scissors on it, this is for cutting the label once it’s complete.

On the top of the label maker is a slot where the labels come out. Next to is what looks like a button with an arrow on it, this is used to remove the back cover.

When you remove the back cover you’ll have access to the battery and label cartridge compartments.

Specifications:

LabelWorks LW-400 Label Printer

Meet the Epson LabelWorks LW-400, a powerful new label maker that turns organizing into an art. Featuring a backlit display, it helps you make labels anywhere, anytime. Choose from a huge range of symbols, frames, fonts, barcodes and tapes in a variety of styles, sizes and colors. The LW-400 is both easy to use and efficient (dramatically smaller margins mean up to 60% less label waste). The LW-400 is an office powerhouse. With amazing versatility and a large, built-in memory, it stores up to 50 files, so you can save those commonly used labels. Use it for barcodes, A/V and computer wiring and just about anything else. Or, use it around the house. In any case, the LW-400 will transform how you organize and give you a new outlet for your imagination.

Key Features
Back to top
Ideal for your labeling needs — prints labels up to ~¾" (18 mm) wide
Backlit display — type and print labels in low lighting conditions
Amazing variety — 14 fonts, 10 styles, 300+ built-in symbols, over 75 frames, bar codes and more
Less waste — smaller lead margin compared to other brands, for up to 60% less lead margin waste
Large built-in memory — store up to 50 self-created label designs
Prints up to four lines of text — more space for you to add specialty frames or symbols to enhance your design
Specialty print modes — a variety of flag, tab and wrap style labels — ideal for cables, wiring and more
Easy to apply — automatically printed with a split back for easy and fast peeling
Asset tagging — easily print barcodes for products and merchandise
Whisper quiet — prints labels without distracting those around you
Supports seven languages — set to the language of your choice
Specialty labels — double-sided tab tapes, glow-in-the-dark, reflective, metallic, strong adhesive, fluorescent and decorative tapes for everyday use in the home or office
Easy-to-use safety symbols and frames — perfect for labeling hazardous materials; use the glow-in-the-dark tape to help light the way in the dark

Price: $49.99 (from Epson)
Price $37.06  (from Amazon at time of review)

The first things you’ll need to do with the LW-400 is insert the batteries and the label cartridge. The label cartridge is easy to insert, just line it up and push it in and that’s it.

When you put the back cover on there’s a nice little window so you can visually see how much you have left in the roll or cartridge. On the back is a also sort of a cheat sheet for you with quick tips or reminders.

When you put the labels in there should be a small bit sticking out ready to go.

The LCD display shows not that much really, but it’s enough to get the job done.

Here’s some example of the graphics and frames. There’s plenty of them and they’re all categorized by things like Food, Sports, Household or Office and plenty more. There are actually 23 categories including things like Punctuation, Measurements and Abbreviations.

Here’s the settings for making a label you could use, these are just the basics though.

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Here’s some of the fonts out of the 14 to choose from.

Then you could pick from styles for the fonts, here’s a few out of the ten that are available:

You can also make special labels for things like folders or cables to wrap around them.

The LabelWorks LW-4090 just comes with a plain label cartridge, just white. One of the things I used it for was labeling my mouse and keyboard USB connections. You can put little pictures on the labels as you can see. Those are black ink with a white background.

One of the other labels sent over to me was blue plaid with gray lettering. I labeled a set of USB headphones so my kids could know what to plugin and which was which. You can see the before and after below.

I was thinking of other things these labels would be good for and DVD boxes came to mind. Not sure I’d use plaid though, but it was just playing around. Several of the movies I have came in those thin cardboard sleeves and not regular DVD boxes so instead of making a cover I just did this quickly.

I also used it to label my kids drawers so they know where their stuff is. It’s much nice than a black marker on it.

Another label they sent me over is the silver or chrome metallic ones, these have black ink. I was just playing around and stuck them on the back of my tablet.

The last label they sent me was the iron on, these require a bit more work but they’re awesome for clothing of course. These iron on labels are blue, but sort of a metallic or shiny with black ink. Here’s examples as well of the borders and graphics you can pick from.

They are iron on so you’ve got to use an iron. The labels are sticky so you just stick them on and then you have to get your iron out and got to work. It literally just take a few seconds and you’re done.

Here’s the labels on the clothes:

The real test of these labels was the washing machine. A lot of iron ons fall off after a few washes, these have been washed four times now and they’re still holding on very tightly. I’d say that’s pretty good.

The labels print fast, no matter which one I used, it all seemed the same speed. The LW-400 is quiet as well, you just barely hear it printing really.

Conclusion:
The Epson LabelWorks LW-400 is truly a very useful little gadget with tons of features and options that would be great for home or office use. I for one am very happy with it, it does much, much more than I ever expected it to. There’s plenty of things to use a label maker for so if you need one, then why not get a good one and the LW-400 is just that, actually it’s a great label maker.

I said in the beginning of this review that I never thought of owning a label printer, but now I can see I was mistaken and I find them very useful.

The one small issue with this printer is the price of the label cartridges, but from what I’ve seen that’s common for any label printer on the market today.

The price of the LW-400 is much less that I expected, I honestly expected it to be closer to $100, but looking around it can be had for $40 to $50.

Pros:
+Easy to use
+Inexpensive
+Fun to use
+Lots of different label choices
+Lots of options

Cons:
-Labels can be expensive

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Epson LabelWorks LW-400 Label Printer is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Today’s review item the Newer Technology Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet helps solve the clutter issue by providing a standard AC outlet along with two USB ports built into the wall outlet. With this device you can charge up to four USB-based devices including iDevices, Android devices, digital cameras, GPS, MP3 players and cell phones. It is compatible with USB 3.0/2.0/1.1 chargeable devices.

The Power2U features a smart power design, which provides only the charging amount needed for a specific device, as well as turning off the USB ports when a connecting cable is removed.

The Power2U comes packaged on a plastic blister card with the receptacle visualized on the front. A cardboard insert describes the features of the Power2U.

Once the plastic blister card is opened we find the Power2U outlet, faceplate, two faceplate retaining screws, two electrical box mounting screws, two white plastic faceplate screw covers and instruction manual.

The Power2U comes in all-white allowing it to match with most home decor. Around its perimeter it appears to be a standard size wall outlet; the difference from other wall receptacles is the addition of two USB ports on each side of the outlet. In the center of the outlet we see the Input and Output capacities.

Since it has UL/CUL Listing the Power2U is the only device of its kind with this certification. New Technology designed it to run on a standard 15 amp electrical circuit and provides the equivalent power of one Apple iPad wall adapter from its DC power output.

The USB ports are covered using spring-loaded safety shutters, which turn off these ports when a connecting cable is removed. The Smart Power technology only outputs enough charging power required by the attached device meaning the Power2U’s USBs can charge devices ranging from a Bluetooth headset to the power-hungry iPad.

The back of the outlet has a plastic housing that protects the circuitry inside the Power2U. Around the perimeter we find two brass screws for the black (live) terminals on one side, two silver screws for the white (neutral) terminal on the opposite side and a green screw on the bottom for the ground terminal.

Specifications:

Newer Technology Power2U

Dual-socket wall outlet with two integrated USB ports for powering and charging USB devices

The Newer Technology Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet is the safe in-wall solution for conveniently powering and charging USB devices at home. Now you can charge and/or power up four devices at once when using the USB 3.0/2.0 ports and standard three-prong outlets, while eliminating unsightly clutter created by multiple cables and bulky power adapters.
Ideal Home Upgrade For Multiple Device Users
Ideal for homes with users of multiple USB chargeable devices, the Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet is a basic "DIY" install on any 15Amp circuit with a 16 cubic inch electrical box** to blend seamlessly into the wall as a standard power outlet. A "straightforward" rated "how to" video demonstrates how the Power2U can be installed in as little as 20 minutes.
Money Saving, Energy Efficient Design
Offering a modern, centralized location for charging/powering USB devices, the Power2U offers two energy efficient features to complement its use convenience. The Smart Power design only outputs enough charging power required by the attached device, while spring-loaded Safety Shutters turn power off to the USB ports when a connecting cable is removed.

Install With Confidence

Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet is the first home-safe, fully UL Listed and approved product of its kind! Beware of knockoffs and other similar in-wall solutions which misrepresent or do not have verified UL approval.

Features:

• Patented (US 7,997,925 B2) design charges iPads, iPhones, iPods, Android tablets and phones, tablet computers, MP3 players, GPS devices, digital cameras, and other USB 3.0/2.0/1.1 chargeable devices without requiring a bulky adapter
• Smart Power feature only outputs enough charging power required by the attached device
• Energy-efficient, spring-loaded Safety Shutter design turns USB ports off when connecting cable is removed
• Uses standard four-pin type-A jack USB cables
• Installs on standard 15A electrical circuit
• First and only UL/CUL Listed (E339607) device of its kind – For use in United States & Canada
• Includes mounting screws with white plastic covers and matching white wall plate

Compatibility:

Apple iPad (all models)
Apple iPhone (all models)
Apple iPod (all USB chargeable models)
Android tablets and phones, tablet computers, cellphones, gaming systems (Nintendo, Sony PSP, etc.), Bluetooth headsets, digital cameras, or GPS devices which charge via standard USB plug

Includes:

• One dual AC socket/dual USB 3.0/2.0/1.1 port outlet
• Two faceplate retaining screws
• Two electrical box mounting screws (pre-installed)
• Two white plastic mends (faceplate screw covers)
• Installation Manual (680KB)

Price: $39.95

The main caveat prior to installing the Power2U is the outlet requires an electrical box that is no smaller than 16 cubic inches. It is important that you do not overfill the electrical box. The Power2U is designed to work with either solid or stranded wire, 12 or 14 AWG. Although the instruction manual is helpful I highly recommend checking out the demonstration video on Newer Technology website. Installation Video

The hardest part of setting up the Power2U is finding an outlet that is convenient and has an electrical box that is equal to or larger than 16 cubic inches. Thankfully the outlets in my recent office renovation had such electrical boxes.

The first step to installing the Power2U is to turn off the power to the old receptacle from the electrical circuit breaker or fuse box. Once the original wall outlet is uncovered examine the wire arrangement and determine if the Power2U is a candidate for this location. For my installation my outlet had two black two white and one green grounding wire.

My installation involved matching up these wires from the original outlet to the Power2U. Connecting the wires to the Power2U involves placing them into the slot of the steel pressure plate on the back of the Power2U and then tightening the screw to 14 pounds-inch of torque and then bending the wire 90° so that it is flat against the Power2U’s body. Newer Technology recommends a 13 mm length of wire to be inserted into the steel screw plate.

Once all the wires are connected fold them into the electrical box keeping the bare ground wire away from the hot and neutral terminals and then screw the Power2U into the receptacle box. Next screw the faceplate onto the Power2U and cover the faceplate screws using the included plastic covers.

Next turn the power back on from the electrical circuit breaker box or fuse box and test the receptacle. If nothing blows up or catches on fire then you are good.

For testing I use the Power2U to charge a number of devices including iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches, external battery packs, an HP Touchpad and more. The Power2U worked as advertised. My only complaint about the Power2U was the USB Safety Shutters were hard to keep open as they tended to snap shut very quickly.

With this receptacle you can cut down on the amount of bulky power adapters and just use the included USB cables to charge your devices. You can also share the receptacle with devices that need to stay plugged in.

The one drawback to the USB ports on the side is a larger AC adapter may cover them rendering them inaccessible when using the AC outlet.

Conclusion:

If your house is filled with USB enabled electronic devices then the Newer Technology Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet would be a welcome addition. The combination of a standard AC outlet with built-in USB ports will probably become commonplace in the coming years. Newer Technology offers this convenience today at a reasonable price of $39.95; considering a replacement power adapter is usually in the $30 range this is an excellent price. It is designed to be installed by do-it-yourselfers or by an electrician. Of course if the latter installs it that will add to the price of the product.

Plus UL listing certification means it is home safe. I know I will be getting plenty of use out of the Newer Technology Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet in my house with my whole family using more electronic devices than I care to count.

Pros:
+Charges all USB devices with ease
+UL Listed
+Energy efficient
+Smart Power
+Safety Shutters on USB ports

Cons:
-Requires electrical installation which may scare off some
-May require electrician for those non Do-It Yourselfers
-Safety Shutters work too well

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Newer Technology Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

The box isn’t what I expected, but then again I don’t know what I expected. It’s a box with the case inside and it’s well packaged to protect it.

The Nighthawk case has a very unique look to it, one that I like honestly.

On the top of case is space for four 5.25” devices and above that you’ll find the front control panel which has power and reset buttons along with audio ports, USB 2.0 and a USB 3.0 connection.

Below the 5.25” bays you’ll find the card reader already installed for you. The reader has an extra USB 2.0 port as well.

On the bottom is a 120mm fan behind the mesh. The fan does have blue LEDs in it which you’ll see later.

On the top of the case is more mesh and you can put two more 120mm cooling fans there for added cooling performance.

Part of the left side of the case is mesh as well, but there’s a 200mm cooling fan here to keep things cool. The mesh part on the side sticks out a bit, just an observation….

The right side of the case is just plain black. On both sides of the case you’ll see the MSI logo and on the side panels are handles to make removal easy. The case is metal and it feels study and just look good overall.

Moving to the back you’ll see the side panel are held on with thumbscrews and you’ll immediately notice the blue accents of the fan and PCI slot covers. There’s also spots to enable you to run tubing for liquid cooling, and the case is the bottom mounted PSU style.

Here’s the front of the case without the bezel on. You can get a better look at the fan and you can see the 5.25” mesh bay covers have filters on them.

On the bottom of the case you’ll notice tall feet and venting for another 120mm fan and for the power supply.

Here’s the view with the right side panel removed or the back of the motherboard tray. There is a large cutout where the CPU is so you can easily swap coolers.

The hard drives and 5.25” devices are tool-less, on both sides you’ll find plastic lock to hold them in place.

Here’s the left side panel off so you can see the fan from the back side, yes it’s blue. I’m not too sure about the whole black and blue color scheme, but I’ve seen worse.

Then now we can get a look at the inside of the case. It’s all black inside of the case to match the outside.

Here’s the view of the back. The 120mm fan has both Molex and 3pin connections for power.

The bottom of the case has four rubber stands where the PSU goes to help keep it just a bit quieter.

Here’s views of the 5.25” bays and the hard drive cage:

Inside there are connections for audio, motherboard headers, USB 2.0 and USB 3.0.

In the accessory bag you’ll see the familiar installation kit with screws and standoffs, user manual, plastic straps for wire management and an MSI dog tag.

Specifications:

Interceptor Series Nighthawk ATX Mid Tower

Utilizing reinforced steel armor plating that protects your vital gear, the Nighthawk also comes fully equipped to ensure your system effortlessly survives even the most rigorous gaming and overclocking sessions.

Advanced Thermal Airflow Design
The Nighthawk includes three high performance fans for top quality cooling, maximized ventilation, and silent operation.

-120mm Rear Ball-Bearing Fan
-120mm Front Blue LED Ball-Bearing Fan
-200mm Side Fan (Can also be replaced with two 120mm fans)
-Three additional 120mm fan openings are available for flexibility and customization.
-Easy to access back panel for performance cooler installations/replacement.
-Bottom-placed PSU greatly improves thermal efficiency and for easiest installation.
-Cable management clips for cleaner installs and additional airflow improvements.
-Elevated stands to prevent airflow blockage on carpet flooring.

Tool-less Drive Bays
Lock n’ load your drives and peripherals conveniently with the tool-less wing clip design.Turn the lock counterclockwise to unlock and remove the wing, insert your device and place into the proper openings, then lock the device in by placing the wing back in and turning it clock-wise.

Gamers can be assured their high-end graphics card will fit, with support for cards up to 310mm. (ex. Radeon 6990 = 305mm, nVIDIA GTX590 = 280mm)

Water Cooling Ready Includes pre-cut rubber holes for advanced hydration systems.

Built-in Card Reader Included free with your MSI case is a 12-in-1 card reader with an additional USB 2.0 port. (Uses USB 2.0 motherboard header)
Supports:
-MS/MS Pro/MS Duo/MS Pro Duo
-CF I/CF II/MD
-SD/MMC/RC MMC
-Extreme Digital
-TF/Micro SD
-M2

Front Panel USB 3.0 Port
SuperSpeed USB 3.0’s 5 GB/s offers 10 times the bandwidth compared to traditional USB 2.0 ports. Simply connect the USB 3.0 connector directly to the port on your motherboard and gain blazing fast file transfer speeds from the front of the case.

Angled Top Panel I/O
Easy to access Power and Reset buttons; Headphone, Mic, USB 2.0 (x2), USB 3.0 (x1) ports.

Mid-Tower – ATX/Micro-ATX Compatibility

Series Interceptor
Name Nighthawk
Model IN-9390
UPC 4712523621650
Case Type ATX Mid Tower
Material Steel
Color Black
Front Bezel Material Mesh
Motherboard Compatibility ATX/ Micro ATX
3.5” Drive Bay Internal 6
5.25” Drive Bay 4
Expansion Slot 7

USB 2.0 3
USB 3.0 1
HD Audio Yes
97 Audio Yes
Card Reader 1
Power Supply Mounted Bottom
Liquid Cooling Ready Yes

Cooling System
Pre-installed Fans
1 x 120MM Front Blue LED Fan
1 x 200MM Side Fan
1 x 120MM Rear Ball Bearing Fan
Optional Fans
2 x 120MM Top Fans
3 x 120MM Side Fans
1 x 120MM Bottom Fan

Advanced Thermal Air Flow Design Yes
Multi-GPU Supported (up to 310mm) Yes
Tool-less Design Yes
Cable Management System Capable Yes

Dimension (Chassis)180(W) x 428(L) x 410(H)MM
Dimension (Case)180(W) x 475(L) x 448(H)MM

MSRP $79.99
Warranty 3 Years

more review text

The next step of course is to install a system in it and I went about it.

One interesting thing to note about the installation process is that you don’t have screws inside of the case to secure your PCI/PCIE cards. There’s a bracket on the outside of the case that you remove them put back on once your cards are in place.

I did use one of the clips to hold the wires in place at the bottom of the case.

Here’s everything installed in the Nighthawk, and it’s a bit cramped but I got it all to fit.

There’s really nowhere to run the wires so I pretty much hard to cram a lot in the bottom of the case.

Here’s the view from behind the motherboard:

I only use one optical drive a blu-ray reader and DVD burner. I normally also have a card reader installed but the Nighthawk came with one so I don’t need mine.

Here’s the front fan lit up:

There’s a ring around the power button that lights up blue also when the system is turned on.

The fans seems to do a decent job of keeping things cool. I should note that the fans are a bit loud for my tastes, but I prefer a very quiet system so I have a low tolerance to loud fans. Keep in mind though, what I think is loud might be fine to someone else.

The side fan seems to suck in a lot of dust, it seems every other day I’m wiping it clean because dust has accumulated on the side in a circular pattern. It is winter though so, the furnace is on keeping up dust around the house.

The Nighthawk feels a bit cramped to me, but there is plenty of room for everything to fit. I just like a bit more room to run wires and such around and through the case.

Conclusion:
The MSI Nighthawk case is a decent looking one, there’s no doubt about that, it’s stylish and just really looks good. The case does have some good qualities like the built-card reader and the fact that it’s mostly tool-less making installation a tad bit easier. The cooling system seems to work well at keeping everything cool inside of the case. You can use the included fans and leave it at that or replace them or the case does have spaces so you can add more fans for even more efficient cooling. There is plenty of room for several hard drives for lots of storage and there’s still room for even the largest of video cards. I really like the addition of the card reader, it is very helpful as I use it often.

The noise level of the fans is a personal preference, I think they’re a bit too loud but that’s me. I like my case to be very quiet as it sits on my desk no more than three feet from me. If it was under the desk then I would guess the sound level would be bearable then. It just depends on how close you are to it really and where you’ll have your case set up, and of course your tolerance to noise from case fans.

The side fan sucks a lot of dust in, in a day or two you’ll be wiping a dust ring from the side. It’s winter so the furnace kicks up a lot of dust in our houses so that’s one of those things that you just have to deal with I guess. It would be nice if there was some kind of filter on the side fan that you could remove and clean but there isn’t so any dust not on the outside fan cover is obviously going to the inside and getting on your components.

To me the case feels a bit cramped as there’s really nowhere to run cables as the motherboard tray isn’t cut-out to allow cables to pass through or even hide behind the tray. Everything kind of has to be jammed in the bottom of the case or wherever else you can.

The cons aren’t that bad really, just small gripes on my part. Overall the case isn’t bad, it’s small and well made so it can be portable if need be. The price is about right, it’s low, more of a budget minded case I guess.

Pros:
+Very well made
+Keeps things cool
+Great design and good looks
+Tool-less
+Built-in card reader

Cons:
-Feels a bit cramped
-Fans are loud
-Really nowhere to run cables
-Sucks a lot of dust in

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of MSI Interceptor Series Nighthawk ATX Mid Tower Case is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

The Verbatim UBS 3.0 Universal Card Reader comes in the rather stand plastic clamshell package but it’s scored on the back so it’s easier to open and no tools are required.

Inside of the package you won’t find much, just the card reader and the USB 3.0 cable. The USB 3.0 connection is the mini type, personally I don’t like these as I’ve broken them, they just seem to fragile. I have to wonder who thought these things would be a good idea.

The card reader is plastic, silver on the top with  a clear cover over it. On the top are also all of the labels for the card reader types so you know what to plug in where.

On the front side you’ll find card slots along with an LED.

On the back side is the UBS 3.0 connection and slots for M2 and microSD cards.

The bottom of the reader has an identification label and rubber feet.

Specifications:

USB 3.0 Universal Card Reader

Verbatim’s USB 3.0 Universal Card Reader makes transferring your digital photos faster and easier than ever. Allowing for transfer speeds up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0 readers, and a sleek, modern design with silver finish, the Universal Card Reader supports a wide variety of memory card formats. Offering plug-and-play functionality with both Windows and Mac operating systems, once connected, you can instantly begin transferring your photos.

Features/Specs:
-Supports memory card formats including CompactFlash Type I & Type II (CF), Secure Digital (SD), Secure Digital High Capacity (SDHC), Mini SD, Micro-SD, Memory Stick (MS), Memory Stick PRO, Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick PRO Duo, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo, Memory Stick Micro (M2), MultiMedia Card (MMC), xD-Picture Card (xD)
-USB 3.0 increases transfer speeds up to 10x faster than USB 2.0
-Sleek, modern design with a silver finish
-100% Compatible with USB 2.0 ports

Price: $25.74 (from Amazon at time of review)

The LED on the card reader is blue and it blinks for activity.

For testing I used the same ATP 4gb SDHC Class 6 Card and am comparing it to the built-in USB 2.0 card reader in my computer and to the Verbatim USB 2.0 Pocket Card Reader.

So I’ve got ATTO Disk benchmark test results for you.

So the USB 3.0 is faster as you can see, the write speed is about 4 mb/s faster and the read is about 3 mb/s. It’s not amazingly fast, but there is an improvement. There might be more of an improvement if I had a faster card, but I don’t seem to have any on hand.

Conclusion:
The Verbatim USB 3.0 Universal Card Reader works fine, I really see nothing wrong with it. It is faster than USB 2.0 but not by much really. Is it worth it? Maybe, as the price is close USB 2.0 readers of the same quality.  The reader looks nice and it works well.

Pros:
+Works fine
+Looks nice
+Decent speeds

Cons:
-Not much difference between USB 2.0 and USB 3.0
-Mini USB 3.0 connection

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Verbatim USB 3.0 Universal Card Reader is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

 

Your boss calls and asks you to send him a copy of a client proposal. The only copy you have is on paper, and you’re in the back of a taxi. Without needing a computer or even a power connection, you use the new Xerox Mobile Scanner to scan the proposal to a PDF file and wirelessly transfer it to your mobile phone. You then email it to your boss in seconds.

Xerox Corporation  today announced the first battery powered scanner that uses Wi-Fi to wirelessly transmit JPG images and multipage PDF files from the scanner to computers, mobile phones, pads and the cloud. Using a free mobile app, the device is able to communicate wirelessly to a PC, Android^®, Mac^®, iPhone^®, iPad^®, iPod^® touch, or the Cloud.

Priced at only $249.99, the Xerox Mobile Scanner is a small (2” x 2.75” x 11.5”) color scanner that includes a 4 GB Eye-Fi SD memory card, carrying case, rechargeable battery and charger. Simple to use, simply press the power button, select a file format (PDF or JPG) and insert the document. The scanner’s patented AutoLaunch technology senses the page and begins scanning.

“The Mobile Scanner provides a quick, convenient way to scan and share documents when you’re on the go,” said John Capurso, vice president of marketing at Visioneer, a Xerox licensing partner. “Untethering the scanner and adding Wi-Fi reflects Xerox’s drive to make life easier for the mobile worker.”

The maker of the world’s first wireless memory card, Eye-Fi (http://www.eye.fi) was a collaborative partner in the development of the scanner. Eye-Fi’s patented and patent-pending technology works with Wi-Fi networks to automatically send photos from a digital camera to online, in-home and retail destinations.

“The Xerox Mobile Scanner is the perfect capture device to work with our technology. We loved the idea and immediately knew that we were helping to design the future of mobile capture devices,” said Ziv Gillat, vice president of business development at Eye-Fi, Inc.

Pricing, Availability

The Xerox Mobile Scanner has a U.S. list price of $249.99 and is available immediately through retail and online channel partners, major resellers, and Xerox and its agents and dealers.

Xerox Mobile Scanner Cuts the Wires is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Neat desk for Mac is the desktop version of the same functioning NeatReceipts which we reviewed here at TestFreaks a few months ago. The Neat Company also make Windows versions of all their products including NeatDesk.

NeatDesk for Mac works with receipts, business cards, and documents turning them into digital versions that are filed away in the NeatWorks software. It uses an ADF (automatic document feeder) scanner to allow quick and simple digitization of one’s documents. The software also can integrate information into Mac’s Address Book and can export data into various formats including Quicken.

The NeatDesk for Mac arrives in an orange and white cardboard box with an image of the scanner on the front. On the back is a screen shot of the NeatWorks software with a list of features adjacent to this image. On one side of the box we find a list of scanner specs, box contents and system requirements. The other side shows a graphic image of the workflow when using the NeatDesk for Mac.

The scanner is packed up protected by recyclable cardboard inserts. Inside the package we find the Neat ADF scanner, the NeatWorks for Mac Install CD, a Quick Start Guide, a USB Cable, scanner calibration paper and a power supply.

The Neat scanner is an automatic document feeder allowing the user to scan up to 15 business cards, receipts and letter sized documents at once. The scanner tray has slots for each of these types of papers and can be removed to scan up to 50 letter-size documents at once.

The scanner measures 10.8”W x 7.5”D x 7.3”H and weighs 4.4 pounds. Other specs include up to 24 PPM Color, Grayscale, B&W (300dpi, A4 size, simplex). In addition the scanner can work with other imaging applications as well.

It is composed of white and gray plastic with two buttons with adjacent LEDs are found on the front – one marked Scan and the other PDF. On the bottom left corner we see the Neat logo. Towards the front is an extendable paper catcher along with another extension by the back paper feeder. On the lower right side just below the paper feeder is a button for opening the front of the Neat Scanner in case of paper jams occur.

The Neat Company designed this scanner to be low-profile and streamlined in its operation. The front of the machine rests at a 45° angle allowing papers to be easily fed into the scanner. This scanner is meant for heavy-duty digitization of your paperwork.

The paper input tray can be removed by placing one’s thumb and forefinger over the business card slot and lightly pushing upwards. The scanner has grooves on the side for reinserting this tray; simply slide it down until it clicks into place.

On the back we find the power switch, USB jack and AC connector. The AC connector is also labeled with the Neat logo making it easier to find when trying to unplug it from a full power strip.

The Quick Start Guide holds the installation CD, install instructions and calibration paper along with the warranty card.

Specifications:

NeatDesk for Mac

NeatDesk for Mac is the high-speed scanner and software combination that will help you clean off your desk and organize all your important information on the Mac.
Lightning-fast scanning.
The award-winning ADF (automatic document feeder) scanner provides a central “inbox” for all the paper that normally clutters your workspace. Its unique paper input tray allows you to insert up to 15 receipts, 15 business cards and 15 full-size documents, and scan them all in a single batch. Or remove the tray to scan up to 50 letter-size pages at once. You can even perform double-sided scanning in a single pass.
Powered by NEW NeatWorks for Mac Version 3.0 software.
Once your paper is digitized, NeatWorks for Mac uses “Intelligent Text Recognition” technology to extract key data from your documents and populate key fields automatically in this robust digital filing system.
Key Features
Scan in receipts to:
• Create expense reports
• Keep records of vendors, dates, totals, even sales tax
• Assign tax categories and save digital copies for tax records (accepted by the IRS)
• Create your own searchable library of information
• Export data to Quicken®
Scan in business cards to:
• Capture contact information including name, company, address, email, website and more
• Save original images of business cards with each contact
• Send information to Address Book
• Sync contacts to your iPhone or mobile device
Scan in documents to:
• Create searchable PDFs
• Capture text that you can edit
• Organize in your digital filing cabinet

System Requirements
• Mac computer with an Intel® processor
• 1 GB of RAM; 3 GB recommended
• Mac OS X v10.5.8 or later
• 256MB of available disk space for installation, 1GB recommended for user data
• CD-ROM or DVD drive required for installation
• Available USB port
Neat ADF Scanner Specifications
• Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) Scanner
• Color/Grayscale/B&W CIS
• Simplex, Duplex
• Maximum Resolution: 600 dpi
• Up to 24 PPM Color, Grayscale, B&W (300dpi, A4 size, simplex)
• Up to 24 PPM Grayscale, B&W (300dpi, A4 size, duplex)
• Capacity: 15 business cards + 15 receipts + 15 letter-size documents (with paper input tray) or 50 letter-size documents with tray removed
• Maximum Scan Area: 8.5” x 11” (up to 30” long)
• Scanner Dimensions: 10.8”W x 7.5”D x 7.3”H
• Weight: 4.4 lbs
• AC Power Adapter: Included
• Factory calibrated
• Image Capture support for scanning into imaging applications

To get started using the NeatDesk for Mac you’ll first need to install the NeatWorks software via the installation disk. Once this process is finished launched the NeatWorks software, which will require the input of the included product key to activate the software. The next step is to connect your scanner to an AC power supply and then connecting to the Mac using the USB cable. The Neat Company recommends avoiding the USB port on the Apple keyboard and connecting the scanner directly to the Mac.

Now you’re ready to digitize your paper clutter. The scanner operates using the Scan or PDF buttons found on the front of the machine or using the Scan button within the NeatWorks software. Simply place your receipts, business cards or documents into the proper slot on the input tray and get scanning.

I went into detail about the NeatWorks in my NeatReceipts review so I will skim over the software side of things. My previous experience with NeatWorks was a pleasant one and I found the software to be fairly user friendly.

Overall the interface is very “Apple” like in its appearance; scanned items fill up the body of the screen with the side bar storing the various folders and sub folders for your digital file cabinet.

As a Quicken user my favorite part of the NeatWorks software is the ability to export to the Quicken format saving me a lot of data entry time and effort.

The scanner worked like lightning digitizing the papers I fed it, it was the data analysis that took the most time. Thus a handful of documents would take a minute or two to process. Depending on the information within the document NeatWorks would file out the appropriate data fields or try as close as possible. While the process is not 100% accurate it was 90% on target during my usage.

Besides its speed, the Neat scanner is very quiet as well.

One drawback to a non flatbed scanner is that some documents would not always scan straight through creating a misaligned scan image. Most of the time NeatWorks was able to auto correct this skew but not always. Sometimes papers would get jammed or snagged but this was mostly with crumpled receipts.

Also I did not like the fact that the feeder sizes were fixed. Not all documents are created the same size but the largest document slot should fit most every type of paper you encounter.

Conclusion:

NeatDesk for Mac is an excellent solution they’re digitizing ones most common paperwork including receipts, business cards and documents. The scanner comes with an automatic document feeder which makes scanning a fast and simple process. The included NeatWorks software is user-friendly in its “Apple” like interface while being very robust and user configurable.

The main difference between the NeatDesk for Mac and the NeatReceipts version is the included scanner as the NeatWorks software is identical for both. With the NeatDesk for Mac the user trades off portability versus speed. The NeatDesk version allows the user to scan numerous documents at once as opposed to the NeatReceipts which scans 3 to 4 receipts per minute.

What may scare off most users from purchasing NeatDesk for the Mac is its price. However similarly priced ADF scanner solutions such as the ones from Fujitsu are in the same price range. The main differentiator between these brands is the bundled software which is a personal preference. My experience with NeatWorks has been a positive one and thus I would recommend NeatDesk for Mac for both the home and business user.

Pros:
+Fast scanner
+Robust well designed software
+Simple setup
+Small footprint
+OCR works well
+Exports to formats including Quicken, Excel and PDF
+Quiet operation

Cons:
-Expensive
-Non adjustable feeder sizes
-Analysis of data much slower than scanning process
-Papers get snagged or misaligned during scanning especially receipts

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of NeatDesk for Mac is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

The printer is packed well as you might expect.

Once you unpack everything you’ll find the ink cartridges, power cord, user manuals, driver/software CD and a sample printable CD as well.

The printer is small in height, it actually looks sleek and honestly I think it looks good.  One small complaint I have though is that it’s mostly glossy and it picks up dust and fingerprints quickly and easily.

The Artisan 730 comes equipped with a flatbed scanner than can scan up to 2400dpi and 9600 interpolated.

Under the scanner you’ll find access to help you remove any paper jams and where the ink cartridges go. The 730 uses six cartridges so you only need to replace what you use.

The control panel can flip up to horizontal, or will stay at any other angle you set it to. Whatever is comfortable for you basically.

On the front of the 730 is a door beneath the control panel that flips down to reveal the paper tray and memory card reader and a USB port that you can use for charging things like you phone if you need to.

The paper tray comes out in sections like most printers and has a stop at the end.

Beneath the paper return tray is the actual paper tray. The paper tray is actually two in one, you can put regular paper in the bottom and then photo paper in the top and the Artisan 730 knows which to use.

Moving around the back of the printer you’ll notice a large roundish section sticking out, this would be the automatic paper flipper, for lack of a more technical term. The 730 can print on both sides automatically for you, so no more manually flipping pages over to print on the back side. This back piece makes the printer very deep, or really big in depth. You’ll need plenty of space for the Artisan 730.

You can easily remove the back section if there happens to be a paper jam.

On the left side you’ll find the Ethernet port and USB port and then the power connection on the right side.

Specifications:

Epson Artisan 730 All-in-One Printer

Rated #1 in photo quality1, Artisan inkjet printers also deliver incredible performance, with the Artisan 730 achieving the World’s Fastest 4" x 6" photo print speeds1. Get 4" x 6" photos in as fast as 10 seconds. Speed through everyday projects. The Artisan 730 gives you all the tools you need with a smart touch panel and 2.5" LCD. Print, scan, and access memory card slots from any room in the house with Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ n wireless networking and built-in Ethernet networking. Or, use Epson Connect to print directly from your smartphone, iPad, tablet and more.

Model: C11CB18201

Features:
ISO Print Speeds
ISO print speeds of 9.6 ISO ppm (black) and 9.1 ISO ppm (color)

Automatic Two-Sided Printing
Save up to 50% on paper with the option of automatic two-sided printing.

Fast, High-Quality Printing and Copying
Quickly print or copy documents and photos — get sharp text and vivid, true-to-life color.

Professional Looking CDs and DVDs
Print directly onto inkjet printable CDs or DVDs, and eliminate the need for labels.

Wireless and Ethernet Network Ready
Share one printer with multiple computers in your home or office, using a wireless or wired network.

Mobile Printing
Wirelessly print documents, photos, calendars, contacts and more; charge your cell phone or MP3 Player using the USB port.

Eco Features:
Estimated power consumption for one year is less than two dollars
Save up to 50% on paper with automatic, two-sided printing
Save even more by printing multiple pages on a single sheet
Supports printing on recycled paper
Designed to be recycled1
ENERGY STAR qualified
RoHS compliant
Epson America, Inc. is a SmartWay Transport Partner

Price:$199.99 (from Epson)

Price: $137.99 (from Amazon at time of review)

You can install the Artisan 730 over Ethernet, USB or Wi-Fi. I choose the Wi-Fi version so I could use all of the features and I like the idea of no cables. Just follow the on-screen steps and instructions and let it install.

For wi-fi there are a few more steps. I got it connected to my network with no hassles, first try and I was up and printing.

The control panel is what Epson calls the Emerald Green Touch Panel, and it’s green as the name implies, or at least the buttons are green.

From the touch panel you can make copies, scan, print photos, print ruled papers and even print coloring books from photos. You can also access the Setup menu, problem solver and back up data from the menu. The touch screen is bright and vivid and it’s very sensitive. You can pop a memory card in and print your photos right from the printer and view them on the LCD. I really like the green on black a lot, it’s visually striking and certainly unique.

One of the great things about this printer is that it can print on printable CDs. You’ll notice a button in the above pictures for the CD Tray, you press it and the tray slides out and you put a CD or DVD in it to be printed. You will need to move the control panel all the way to the horizontal position to access the tray though.

When you’re installing the software it will also install the CD printing program aptly named Epson print CD. I found it very easy to use really and it comes with backgrounds and templates ready for you or you can add you own photos.

Besides printing CDs I printed text, text and graphic and of course pictures.  It occurs to me I didn’t get a separate picture of the CD, but there it is in the photo below along with everything else. The CD came out very nice.

The photos printed very fast and they’re just gorgeous, you can’t see any lines in them like with some other printers out. They really look professionally done. The ink dries super fast, they come out and you can touch them without smearing of getting ink on your fingers. The same went with text as well, it dried virtually instantly. The blacks are very dark, and just overall the pictures look great.

Printing text or text and graphic is very fast, a whole page in seconds.

Taking a closer look at the text we can see it is crisp and clear, and I see no runs or overspray at all.

Here’s a couple zoomed in very close to show you better:

One of the great things about this printer is the ability to print right from your phone or tablet. I downloaded the Epson iPrint from the Android market to my tablet and I could easily print photos, documents and more right from it. You can install it on your phone of course and do the same thing. This also works with iDevices too. To use the program you have to have the printer connected over Wi-Fi though.

One thing I noticed is that the printer seems to use a lot of ink. If you look up at that second photo there with the ink levels you’ll see I’ve used a lot of black, but I don’t think I really did. I printed a few full pages of text and several text and graphic pages along with a few mailing labels. It just feels like I used a lot more ink that I should have.

Under properties you’ll find printing presets and pretty much everything else you’ve come to expect to find in here.

I think that’s about it, I think I’ve covered it all. It’s a great printer really.

Conclusion:
The Epson Artisan 730 is a printer that can give you studio quality photos quickly and easily. It allows you to print directly from a memory card or even a mobile device like your phone or tablet. The Artisan 730 is something for those that want high quality results from their printer and the 730 can offer you that and much more. It’s a printer that can help you fully realize that creative side in all of us, be it a business presentation or just something for your kids school project, the Artisan 730 can do it and make it look professionally done. 

The printer does seem to use a lot of ink quickly. It’s a bit on the large side so you’ll need to find the appropriate space for it.

Pros:
+Simple and easy to use
+Print directly from mobile devices
+Print directly from memory cards
+Prints gorgeous photos
+Fast printing
+Prints on CDs and DVDs
+Can auto correct photos

Cons:
-Seems to use ink rather fast
-A bit on the large side

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Epson Artisan 730 All-in-One Printer is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Instead of using plastic simulacrums for musical instruments these new games use actual guitars, drums and other musical devices. Games such as RockSmith and Wild Chords incorporate a real guitar as a game interface thus helping teach the user how to play a musical instrument.

It is initially targeting the beginner and intermediate level guitar players and is designed to teach as well as entertain.

Wild Chords is a guitar-teaching app disguised as a game, which helps make practice exercises more entertaining.

With its cartoony interface and back-story Wild Chords is aimed for kids as well as adults. The premise to the game is based on the Pied Piper of Hamlin fable. The back-story involves the animals of the Ovelin Zoo have escaped into the local city. Thankfully these animals are easily hypnotized by guitar playing which the iPad’s user provides.

Wild Chords is a free download from the App Store. Ovelin makes its money off Wild Chords through in-app purchases of additional levels.

Specifications:

Wild Chords

Playing to play the guitar

WildChords is an iPad game that makes learning to play the guitar fun, addictive and motivating. It’s played with a real guitar (no additional equipment needed). The user hypnotizes animals by playing their favorite chords (“Modern Pied Piper of Hamelin”). It is a family friendly game, suitable for beginners and intermediates of all ages and was chosen Best European Learning Game 2011.

The animals of Ovelin zoo have escaped from their cages and intruded the city. Fortunately, animals love guitar music. This is why we developed WildChords, a game that prepares you for such a case of emergency. Learn to play the guitar with WildChords, and you could be the one that saves the world!

About WildChords

What is WildChords

Playing the guitar is a great hobby! Unfortunately, up to 85% of people that learn to play a music instrument quit, before they reach a reasonable level. Why? Because in the beginning, the exercises are rather boring. This is why Ovelin developed WildChords, an iPad game that gets people hooked on practicing guitar. It is played with a real acoustic or electric guitar, and you don’t need any additional equipment to play it.

What happened in Ovelin city

There has been a major breakout at the Ovelin city zoo, and the animals are going wild in the streets causing all kinds of chaos. The monkeys for example intrude the library, and “reorganize” the books there. This is where the main character is being struck by a book whirled through the air. When he regains consciousness, he spots a book about the Piped Piper of Hamelin.

In this ancient German legend, the city of Hamelin was saved from a rat infestation by one brave musician. The musician hypnotized the rats with pipe music, and lured them out of the city.

Inspired by the heroic tale, the user grabs a guitar and starts playing chords. As it turns out, each animal likes a specific chord. Crocodiles like the C chord, Apes like the A chord, and so on. Equipped with this “magic weapon”, the user walks the streets, rounding up animals. And as he gets more skilled on playing the guitar, he is able to lead the animals out of the city.

Do you have what it takes to save Ovelin city? Try it out for free with WildChords!

How does WildChords work

WildChords utilizes high-tech audio technologies that can recognize through the microphone what you play. Therefore, users can play the game on the iPad with any normal guitar (acoustic or electric without distortion). You need no additional equipment or cables! Take your old guitar from the cellar, or buy one from the flea market. Your iPad and WildChords will turn your guitar into a game controller. The game levels are short one minute exercises that get successively more difficult as the players skills improve. So also busy people can learn to play the guitar, but be warned, it gets you hooked easily!

Who is WildChords suitable for

WildChords is suitable for beginners of all ages, whether they learn by themselves, with a teacher, a self-learning DVD, through YouTube or by any other means. You don’t need any previous knowledge, just grab your guitar, watch the intro video (coming soon) and start playing. Even for people that don’t want to learn to play the guitar, WildChords is fun!

To get started you will need a first or second-generation iPad and a real guitar. You can use an acoustic, electric acoustic or even an unplugged electric guitar. The game uses the built-in microphone on the iPad to determine how well you’re playing.

To make sure that the animals will follow your playing the app includes a built-in guitar tuner.

The game starts by teaching the basics of guitar playing including common chords, melody and scale exercises for lead guitar playing.

If you’ve never played guitar before you should check out videos on Ovelin’s YouTube channel for some helpful tips before you get started.

The home screen has seven options – Play, Tuner, Tutorials, Profile, Settings, Credits and Buy More Packages. All theses options are pretty self-explanatory.

The most interesting one is the Profile screen which acts like your guitar instructor providing feedback on how the user is performing by providing total score, hour played and offering incentive for playing a certain amount per week with bonus scoring. This is a good way to provide playing incentive for those who are truly competitive.

If you want to “brag on Facebook” you can do that as well.

Wild Chords starts with the back-story explaining the premise of the game, showing off some basics of guitar playing along with the relationship between the notes/cords and the animals to be captured. For instance the "D" chord will capture a duck, while the "C" a crocodile and the "A" an ape.

The game is comprised of several levels (lessons). "Downtown" starts with the most basic lessons and games.

On the main level selection screen a green light over that part of town indicates that the user has passed while orange means not passed. There are additional locked areas that can be purchased for those who advanced through the game or feel they are advanced enough for those challenges.

For testing I played Wild Chords using an unplugged electric guitar. The tuner worked well as it was able to determine when my guitar was in and out of tune.

For those used to looking at the neck of one’s guitar then Wild Chords will take some getting used to as you’ll need to keep your eyes on the iPad screen especially as you advance into the game. Wild Chords uses tablature style reading for some boards and note/chord recognition via others using animals.

Once you’ve played Wild Chords long enough you should know most of these chords (E, Em, A, Am, D, Dm, C, G, F, B). All of the music is original compositions so you won’t be seeing Iron Man or Smoke on the Water on Wild Chords.

The main caveat to using Wild Chords is that it requires a quiet environment so the app can determine if the user is playing the correct notes or chords. I found if there was too much background noise then the app would determine I missed a note of chord when I most definitely did not.

Conclusion:

By using a game structure Wild Chords will help the user to learn chords on the guitar in a playful fashion. Sometimes the best way to learn something tedious is to make it fun and Wild Chords easily accomplishes this.

While the game structure seems simple and kid oriented the game itself is fun for adults and kids. It is initially aimed for beginner and intermediate guitar players but becomes more challenging once you get to the in app purchase levels.

Since the app is free you can try out the game to see if you like it before spending any money on the additional levels. If you have a guitar laying around the house then Wild Chords is definitely worth a look.

Pros:
+Free
+Teaches guitar basics in a fun manner
+Built in tuner
+Works with most types of guitars

Cons:
-Does not have any well know songs

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of Wild Chords iPad App is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog