Rumplestiltskin
 
 
Rumplestiltskin's Stats
 
  • Review Count
    47
  • Helpfulness Votes
    13
  • First Review
    August 17, 2018
  • Last Review
    April 17, 2024
  • Featured Reviews
    0
  • Average Rating
    4.5
 
Reviews Comments
  • Review Comment Count
    2
  • Helpfulness Votes
    1
  • First Review Comment
    July 11, 2021
  • Last Review Comment
    January 29, 2024
  • Featured Review Comments
    0
 
Questions
  • Question Count
    0
  • Helpfulness Votes
    0
  • First Question
    None
  • Last Question
    None
  • Featured Questions
    0
 
  • Answer Count
    28
  • Helpfulness Votes
    10
  • First Answer
    August 29, 2018
  • Last Answer
    January 29, 2024
  • Featured Answers
    0
  • Best Answers
    3
 
 
Rumplestiltskin's Reviews
1 2 3 4 5 next>>
 
Wherever you need to go, our remarkably sleek Zenbook 14 OLED is there with you — the ultimate ultraportable laptop that takes sophistication to a whole new level. Discover new heights for speed and efficiency with the top-tier Intel Core Ultra 7 processor—taking you seamlessly from day to night on its all-day 75Wh battery. Immerse your senses on a gorgeous 14" ASUS Lumina OLED touchscreen and powerful new Super-linear speakers tuned by Harman Kardon.
 
Honest review. Wasn't incentivized.
Customer Rating
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on April 17, 2024
Battery Life
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Speed
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Display
5.0 out of 5
5.0
No, I've not been incentivized to write this review. No promotions.
It's still early days (as I picked this up on the 13th of April) but I thought it important to post my feelings about this machine ASAP.
Speed: I had an 8265U LG Gram before and this Asus feels about double the speed but Windows 11 is fairly inefficient (especially Windows Explorer). First time launches of newly installed apps are slow but I think Windows may be writing a bunch of files during this initial launch. Subsequent launches (even a few days later) are fairly quick. Web surfing (I use Firefox) is faster but the bottleneck here is how fast your ISP can deliver the content. But I have no complaints here.
The screen is wonderful although, without a 360 degree hinge, why even bother with a touch screen? It just gets fingerprints so I don't even use it. But the 1920 x 1200 resolution, the extremely bright screen (which may be dimmed without flickering), and the sharpness is just first-rate.
The keyboard has plenty of space, large enough keys, and the key travel is perfect.
The build quality is excellent; no flexing yet still very lightweight.
The only issue I've encountered is a strange touchpad behavior. The hardware is all fine, I believe, but when I enable tapping, the right-hand 1/2" of the touchpad (from top to bottom) will not register a tap. That part of the pad does work for moving the cursor and even two-finger scrolling so I know the hardware is fine; it's just a goofy driver that Asus hasn't yet sorted out. If I were to put a narrow piece of adhesive tape vertically on that right-hand area, I'd not use that section of the touchpad and wouldn't experience this problem. But I do want to stress that I do expect it to be fixed by Asus eventually with an updated driver.
Accordingly, I took of one star for bad Asus software QC. But I won't return the unit as it does, in every other way, meet or exceed my expectations.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Verified Purchaser:Yes
Mobile Submission: False
Length of ownership: 3
0points
3out of 6found this review helpful.
 
We all deserve a Cleaner, Greener, Earth. The Aspire Vero is our answer. A product with an eye on sustainability, it uses 40% PCR plastic in the chassis that cuts CO2 emissions by 21% to 30%. Easily upgradeable and recyclable and made to adapt to our planet’s needs, the Aspire Vero is an eco-friendly unrivaled computing experience.
 
Don't buy this here. Do your research.
Customer Rating
2.0 out of 5
2.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on January 29, 2024
Not about the product but the vendor.
BB is selling it for $100 -more- than the list price at Acer and $170 -more- than Acer -says- BB is selling it for.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Mobile Submission: False
-1point
0out of 1found this review helpful.
 
Don’t let your laptop or smartphone battery die as you work throughout the day. The Insignia NS-PW372AC1W22 72.5W 2-Port USB-C/USB Wall Charger has a 72.5-watt output to quickly charge your laptop, smartphone, tablet or other device. It has a USB-C and a standard USB port so you can connect your cables (not included) and charge two devices simultaneously. Its compact and durable body with a foldable plug easily fits into a purse or pocket, ready for when you need it. A simple white design pairs well with your other accessories. Keep your laptop and phone both working as hard as you do with this dual-port, easy-to-carry charger.
 
Yep; plenty of juice; nice and small.
Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on December 22, 2022
Quality
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Value
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Wanted a smaller charger than the one that came with my LG Gram (and that one plugs into a dedicated barrel-type charging port). The trick was to find a USBC type that pumps out enough wattage. This unit claims 65W on the USBC port. I don't have a means to measure it exactly but it was enough to charge up the LG and not have any warnings come up about insufficient power. Perfect.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Verified Purchaser:Yes
Mobile Submission: False
Length of ownership: 16
+1point
1out of 1found this review helpful.
 
 VIZIO - 50" Class V-Series LED 4K UHD SmartCast TV
VIZIO - 50" Class V-Series LED 4K UHD SmartCast TV
Discover the wonder of 4K entertainment with the all-new VIZO V-Series® 4K HDR Smart TV. The feature-packed V-Series combines 4K Ultra HD and full array backlighting with Dolby Vision™ high dynamic range and the lightning-quick IQ Active™ processor to achieve breathtaking picture quality and performance. The V-Gaming Engine™ with Auto Game Mode, meanwhile, makes the latest console games more responsive at the lowest input lag. Fill that beautiful 4K screen with the latest entertainment as you stream, control and share like never before: VIZIO’s award-winning SmartCast™ platform delivers fast, intuitive access to the best selection of apps from top-tier streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, YouTube, and Prime Video. Free Streaming Channels are a cord-cutter’s dream, serving up unlimited free viewing from specially curated channels. Apple AirPlay 2 and Chromecast built-in let you enjoy thousands of the phone/tablet apps you know and love, now on the TV. You can even use voice to control the TV with popular voice assistants including Siri, the Google Assistant and Alexa-enabled devices. The smarter-than-ever VIZIO V-Series 4K HDR Smart TV offers spectacular 4K picture quality and elevated gaming at an unbeatable value.
 
Not worth it at any price
Customer Rating
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on August 4, 2021
Quality
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Value
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Ease of Use
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Absolutely the worst audio quality I've ever heard in an allegedly -good- TV. The first one I bought exhibited distortion at even the lowest volume levels. I had to turn it up to about 60% just to hear it in a fairly quiet room. I returned it and found another in another store. This one had no distortion but, again, I had to turn up the volume to 60% just to hear it. The store clerk said they cripple the audio intentionally to force you to buy a sound-bar. Well, that's not going to happen. Ended up with the 43" TCL/Roku which actually had the same video quality (in everything I watch) but excellent audio at 1/3 the level (same volume but lower # proportionally). The Vizio was hugely disappointing as I bought a 43" model for my kids a few years ago and that one is still working great.
Oh, yeah; a couple of other things: The user interface of the Vizio is awful. The -hundreds of free channels- are mostly garbage.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Verified Purchaser:Yes
Mobile Submission: false
+1point
1out of 1found this review helpful.
 
 ASUS - Zenbook 14" Laptop - AMD Ryzen 5 - 8GB Memory - NVIDIA GeForce MX350 - 256GB SSD
ASUS - Zenbook 14" Laptop - AMD Ryzen 5 - 8GB Memory - NVIDIA GeForce MX350 - 256GB SSD
ASUS ZenBook 14 Q407IQ Laptop: Complete urgent projects on the go with this ASUS ZenBook laptop. The 14-inch Full HD display provides stunning visuals, while the AMD Ryzen 5 processor and 8GB of RAM power through everyday software and support smooth multitasking. This Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-enabled ASUS ZenBook laptop has a 256GB SSD for rapid boots.
 
Illegible keyboard
Customer Rating
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on July 20, 2021
Quality
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Value
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Ease of Use
1.0 out of 5
1.0
You've got two ways of interacting with this computer: Touchpad and keyboard. The touchpad is okay. The keyboard is miserable. Why? You can't actually -read- the keycaps unless the lights are off and the backlighting is on. In daylight, there's not enough contrast between the characters and the key background. Move to dim lighting where the backlighting begins to kick in and the keyboard is totally illegible.
Move along...nothing to see here...literally.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Mobile Submission: false
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
 
 ASUS - Vivobook 17.3" Laptop - Intel Core 10th Gen i7 - 16GB Memory - 1TB SSD
ASUS - Vivobook 17.3" Laptop - Intel Core 10th Gen i7 - 16GB Memory - 1TB SSD
ASUS Vivobook Laptop. Enjoy everyday activities with this ASUS notebook PC. The Intel Core i7 processor and 16GB of RAM let you run programs smoothly, on the 17.3-inch FHD display. This ASUS notebook PC has 1TB SSD that shortens load times and offers ample storage.
 
Illegible keyboard
Customer Rating
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on July 20, 2021
Quality
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Value
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Ease of Use
1.0 out of 5
1.0
You've got two ways of interacting with this computer: Touchpad and keyboard. The touchpad is okay. The keyboard is miserable. Why? You can't actually -read- the keycaps unless the lights are off and the backlighting is on. In daylight, there's not enough contrast between the characters and the key background. Move to dim lighting where the backlighting begins to kick in and the keyboard is totally illegible.
Move along...nothing to see here...literally.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Mobile Submission: false
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
 
Help safeguard your cherished memories effortlessly with the easystore portable hard drive. Designed for your on-the-go lifestyle, this compact device offers seamless plug-and-play connectivity. Preserve your photos, videos, and important files with ease, thanks to the included backup software. Your memories deserve exceptional protection, and easystore® helps ensure that every precious moment is seamlessly stored, so you can relive them whenever, wherever.
 
Works fine so far.
Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on November 13, 2020
  • Verified Purchaser
  • My Best Buy® Elite Plus Member
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Quality
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Value
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Can't speak to the reliability or longevity yet but it worked fine and continues to do so. Immediately re-initialized the drive to rid it of any WD-provided software (which isn't necessary and, for a Mac, is detrimental). Otherwise, it's plug-n-play goodness.
Will try to update this review in another 6 months and 1 year.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Verified Purchaser:Yes
Mobile Submission: false
Length of ownership: 25
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
 
 SanDisk - PLUS 240GB Internal SATA Solid State Drive
SanDisk - PLUS 240GB Internal SATA Solid State Drive
SanDisk, a pioneer in solid state storage technologies and the brand pros trust, delivers improved speed and performance with the SanDisk SSD Plus. With sequential read speeds of up to 530MB/s, this solid state drive performs faster than a typical hard disk drive. You'll appreciate faster startups, shutdowns, data transfers, and application response times than with a hard disk drive. The SanDisk SSD Plus also offers quiet, reliable performance, and dashboard status monitoring for your favorite media applications.
 
Solid, inexpensive SSD
Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on September 21, 2020
  • Verified Purchaser
  • My Best Buy® Elite Plus Member
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Quality
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Value
5.0 out of 5
5.0
If you can't find the Samsung 860 cheap, this SanDisk should work fine for most applications. One exception is older Macs that have a SATA II interface. If the SSD (which is SATA III) is used in such a Mac, it will run at SATA I speed (or won't boot the Mac). Don't know of any PCs with this issue. So, bottom line: These are fine for SATA III Macs but, if you have a SATA II Mac, get the Samsung (which is backward compatible and will run at the speed of the SATA bus).
I would recommend this to a friend!
Verified Purchaser:Yes
Mobile Submission: false
Length of ownership: 26
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
 
 PNY - 8GB 1600 MHz DDR3 SoDIMM Laptop Memory - Green
PNY - 8GB 1600 MHz DDR3 SoDIMM Laptop Memory - Green
Give your computer a much-needed upgrade with this PNY 8GB DDR3 RAM. It's designed to fit in a compatible notebook or laptop, and the 1600MHz frequency speed ensures data can quickly be transferred to the stick to reduce or even eliminate delays. This PNY 8GB DDR3 RAM is compatible with 1.35-volt motherboard RAM slots.
 
Inexpensive but fine
Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on August 7, 2020
  • Verified Purchaser
  • My Best Buy® Elite Plus Member
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Quality
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Value
5.0 out of 5
5.0
You can pay more with other brands but PNY has worked nicely in my PCs and Macs for years. This particular sku is no exception.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Verified Purchaser:Yes
Mobile Submission: true
Length of ownership: 43
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
 
 LG - gram 13.3" Touch-Screen Laptop - Intel Core i5 - 8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive
LG - gram 13.3" Touch-Screen Laptop - Intel Core i5 - 8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive
View photos, watch videos and get work done on this LG gram 13.5-inch laptop. The Full HD resolution provides stunning visuals, while the IPS panel lets you see contents. This LG gram 13.5-inch laptop has an Intel Core i5 processor for powering through intensive tasks, and the 256GB SSD offers fast load times.
 
Tiny, featherweight, perfect travel machine
Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Rumplestiltskin
on July 25, 2020
  • My Best Buy® Elite Plus Member
Quality
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Value
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
I had first purchased the HP Envy 13" but it had trackpad configuration issues I could not resolve (even with hacking the registry). When using HP's website, it couldn't even tell what version of Windows it was running (Win10Home). Well, I returned that unit and actually spent more to get the LG gram. (The HP was on sale). I prefer the screen of the LG; even though they are both touchscreens (and, therefore, glossy), the gram appears sharper. BTW, I prefer glossy screens as I come from the Mac world.
The gram uses an 8th gen Intel Core i5 while the HP Envy had the latest 4700U AMD CPU which, allegedly, runs rings around the older Core i5. Doesn't seem that way to me; I am not waiting for things to happen.
I prefer the keyboard of the gram; the HP's seems huge but that might just be the size of the keycap labels. The gram's key travel is fine although I do prefer a longer travel (like old Mac laptops from 2012 and older; the newer ones are awful).
The trackpad software is Microsoft's "precision" driver which is anything but. Adjusting the "friction" and "momentum" (inertia?) settings in the registry set things right; it works like a Mac now.
Battery life is tremendous. I can go for a number of days without charging.
Buy this. It works great.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Mobile Submission: false
+1point
1out of 1found this review helpful.
 
Rumplestiltskin's Questions
 
Rumplestiltskin has not submitted any questions.
 
Rumplestiltskin's Answers
<<prev 1 2 3
 
The USB 3.0 7-Port HUB allows up to seven USB 3.0 devices to be connected simultaneously at a transmission speed of 5 Gbps, while still providing connectivity and support for the older USB 2.0 (480 Mbps) and 1.1 (12 Mbps) devices. It works with high-bandwidth SuperSpeed USB 3.0 devices, such as an external disk drive, high-resolution webcam, multi-channel audio and more. In addition, it supports fast charging for smartphones, tablets and iPad.
 

Will this work with an Apple iPad Pro?

As a means to plug your iPad into your Mac, yes (as long as the iPad Pro's cable ends in a USB-A plug).
4 years, 5 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 Samsung - T5 1TB External USB Type C Portable SSD - Deep black
Samsung - T5 1TB External USB Type C Portable SSD - Deep black
Store files securely on this 1TB Samsung portable SSD. It transfers data at speeds of up to 540MB/s for increased work productivity, and it connects to Android smart phones with a downloadable app, so you can backup pictures and music. This Samsung portable SSD is smaller than a standard business card for easy transport.
 

Can this device be used between a pc and a mac at the same time?

If all you wish to do is have a drive that both the Mac and the PC may both read from and write to, then format the drive as FAT32 (if your file sizes will be smaller than 4GB). Some restrictions in file naming may also happen - don't remember exactly what they are at this moment). Otherwise use ExFAT and 4GB+ and long filenames are supported. Do not use HFS+ or APFS (Apple file systems) nor should you use NTFS as Macs can read but can't write to it.
5 years, 5 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 SanDisk - PLUS 120GB Internal SATA Solid State Drive
SanDisk - PLUS 120GB Internal SATA Solid State Drive
SanDisk, a pioneer in solid state storage technologies and the brand pros trust, delivers improved speed and performance with the SanDisk SSD Plus. With sequential read speeds of up to 530MB/s, this solid state drive performs faster than a typical hard disk drive. You'll appreciate faster startups, shutdowns, data transfers, and application response times than with a hard disk drive. The SanDisk SSD Plus also offers quiet, reliable performance, and dashboard status monitoring for your favorite media applications.
 

Again, as the other person asked, What is the difference of this one and the previous it had replaced? SanDisk?? Tired of so much disinformation out there and wasting my time trying to decipher it all!

SanDisk (and all the drive mfr's) periodically update their products. Whatever changes are made are designed to improve performance and/or reliability. To delve into the specifics of the changes is to get lost in the weeds. Just make sure you backup everything and register your warranty.
5 years, 5 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 NETGEAR - Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender with Ethernet port
NETGEAR - Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender with Ethernet port
NETGEAR Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender: Broaden your network connection with a range extender that gives you extra Wi-Fi coverage in your home. Smart LED indicators will direct you to the optimal location to plug the extender into the wall, so you can easily enjoy improved range and speed on your mobile and wired devices. Save on data usage by connecting your smartphone or tablet to your home network.
 

Purchased this unit a year ago. Seems to work fine, but greatly limits the speed to devices connected to it. I understand that this is normal for extenders, but are they all created equal? Are there other extenders that will pass a higher speed through?

Yes; there are other brands/models but the usual reason for complain is that you've placed the extender too far from the router. Remember that this device can't provide any better signal than what it receives.
5 years, 6 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 NETGEAR - Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender with Ethernet port
NETGEAR - Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender with Ethernet port
NETGEAR Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender: Broaden your network connection with a range extender that gives you extra Wi-Fi coverage in your home. Smart LED indicators will direct you to the optimal location to plug the extender into the wall, so you can easily enjoy improved range and speed on your mobile and wired devices. Save on data usage by connecting your smartphone or tablet to your home network.
 

Can this be used to extend the range of an Apple Airport Extreme 5th gen?

Yes.
5 years, 6 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 NETGEAR - Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender with Ethernet port
NETGEAR - Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender with Ethernet port
NETGEAR Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender: Broaden your network connection with a range extender that gives you extra Wi-Fi coverage in your home. Smart LED indicators will direct you to the optimal location to plug the extender into the wall, so you can easily enjoy improved range and speed on your mobile and wired devices. Save on data usage by connecting your smartphone or tablet to your home network.
 

Can I plug this out in the garage and still get reception from the house

Generally speaking, yes. Remember that the extender will only provide as good a signal as -it- receives so check with your laptop at various distances from the router (wifi access point) toward the garage. If the laptop loses signal, that's too far away to plug in the extender. You might try the half-way point (between the router and the garage) and, if you get a good signal there, plug in the extender there. That will replicate essentially the same strength signal from that point.
5 years, 6 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 Amazon - Fire HD 8 - 8&quot; - Tablet - 16GB 7th Generation, 2017 Release - Black
Amazon - Fire HD 8 - 8" - Tablet - 16GB 7th Generation, 2017 Release - Black
Load up this Amazon Fire HD 8 tablet with your favorite games, shows and books, and keep occupied when flying or riding. The 8-inch screen delivers a dazzling high-definition display, and a front-facing VGA camera offers easy video-conferencing with friends. This Amazon Fire HD 8 tablet is expandable up to 256GB more storage so you can carry your entire library.
 

can I download pictures from my kodak camera ? kodak easy share. you tube, face book, flickr, 12 mga. I have a amazon fire hd 8" 7th gen. 2017 release tablet....Geek saya I can't is that true ?

No; not directly from the camera. You may download photos from eMails you receive or sharing sites (Google Drive, etc.) but the storage on this device is limited so you're better off using an online photo site (Google Photos, Shutterfly) and the appropriate app for that site to view your photos as you will fill this quite quickly.
5 years, 9 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin
 
 Apple - MagSafe-to-MagSafe 2 Converter - Silver
Apple - MagSafe-to-MagSafe 2 Converter - Silver
Easily charge your MagSafe 2-equipped Mac computer with this Apple® MD504LL/A converter that is compatible with a variety of Apple devices with a MagSafe connector, including 24" and 27" LED Cinema displays, Thunderbolt displays and more.
 

Can this be used to connect an older MacBook to a newer MagSafe 2 charger?

No; this is only for connecting a newer Mac with a MagSafe2 port to an older power brick (with a MagSafe tip). Do note that the latest MacBooks/Pros use a USBC power port so this adapter will not work for you in this case. The MacBook Air is still (as I write this) using a MagSafe2 power port.
5 years, 9 months ago
by
Posted by: 
Rumplestiltskin