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- Review count210
- Helpfulness votes1,248
- First reviewJanuary 28, 2017
- Last reviewJuly 4, 2025
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- Average rating4.1
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- Answer count16
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- First answerJune 2, 2017
- Last answerDecember 9, 2021
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Upgrade your barbecue setup with this two burner 47-inch Everdure FORCE propane gas grill. The fast ignition speeds up cooking, while the contemporary taps let you control the temperature easily and the cast aluminum construction offers durability. This Everdure FORCE propane gas grill features a high hood that ensures plenty of airflow for consistent results.
Customer Rating
4
Excellent Construction, Poor Documentation
on January 1, 2021
Posted by: NAMO
SET-UP
Initial set-up and assembly were easy enough. There are not a lot of parts to assemble, so total time from unboxing to initial use wasn’t much more than an hour. Having done it once, a person could easily knock that time down in half. The only thing that made the whole assembly process difficult was the poor documentation on the hardware supplied with the grille. The grille includes a bag of screws, washers, and lock washers. The instructions reference screws that are the same diameter, but only 1mm longer or shorter than their neighbors. Normally, it wouldn’t be an issue, but after assembling a bunch of items throughout my lifetime, having instructions that show the actual size of the bolt or screw is an absolute requirement in my book. While assembly was easy due to the design, figuring out the hardware was a pain in the neck and added unnecessary time and complication to something that should be straightforward.
Initial set-up and assembly were easy enough. There are not a lot of parts to assemble, so total time from unboxing to initial use wasn’t much more than an hour. Having done it once, a person could easily knock that time down in half. The only thing that made the whole assembly process difficult was the poor documentation on the hardware supplied with the grille. The grille includes a bag of screws, washers, and lock washers. The instructions reference screws that are the same diameter, but only 1mm longer or shorter than their neighbors. Normally, it wouldn’t be an issue, but after assembling a bunch of items throughout my lifetime, having instructions that show the actual size of the bolt or screw is an absolute requirement in my book. While assembly was easy due to the design, figuring out the hardware was a pain in the neck and added unnecessary time and complication to something that should be straightforward.
DESIGN
The absolute best design feature of this grille is the fact that it is made from aluminum. Anyone that has owned a grille stored outdoors, knows that eventually the heat and elements take their toll. Whether it be the firebox, burners, cabinet, or something else, the intense heat from cooking, followed by the outdoor elements eventually cause the grille to rust and rot. Some are better made than others, but eventually it will happen.
The absolute best design feature of this grille is the fact that it is made from aluminum. Anyone that has owned a grille stored outdoors, knows that eventually the heat and elements take their toll. Whether it be the firebox, burners, cabinet, or something else, the intense heat from cooking, followed by the outdoor elements eventually cause the grille to rust and rot. Some are better made than others, but eventually it will happen.
This grille looks to stop the rot. The stand is a combination of fiber reinforced plastics with aluminum legs. The fire box is made from cast aluminum with a nice-looking finish on it. Inside are 2 stainless steel burner assemblies. Even the “wings” of the grille are made from aluminum to resist rot and decay. The only thing not aluminum, are the cast iron cooking grates. AWESOME!!! Gone are the days of grilles lasting a couple of years before they rust out and become useless!
USE
The grille lights will light on the 2nd or 3rd strike on every use. The burners put out a claimed 22,000 BTU’s and they heat up quick. A person can fire up the grille and be searing a good steak in a matter of minutes. The cast iron cooking grates add just the right amount of pattern and sear instantly.
The grille lights will light on the 2nd or 3rd strike on every use. The burners put out a claimed 22,000 BTU’s and they heat up quick. A person can fire up the grille and be searing a good steak in a matter of minutes. The cast iron cooking grates add just the right amount of pattern and sear instantly.
As and added bonus, the grille comes with a premium grille cover. The cover is thick and durable and fits the grille and attached 15 pound propane tank perfectly.
NEGATIVES
The cooking grates do an excellent job at providing a top notch sear on your steaks, but suffer from other foods sticking horribly to them. Throwing a couple of turkey burgers on the grille resulted in quite a bit of meat loss from sticking. To be fair, this may be able to be reduced or eliminated by using some non-stick spray or maybe even as the grates get more seasoned. On a positive note, my steaks have never once stuck while searing, so time will tell as I attempt to cook more things aside from steaks and a few burgers.
The cooking grates do an excellent job at providing a top notch sear on your steaks, but suffer from other foods sticking horribly to them. Throwing a couple of turkey burgers on the grille resulted in quite a bit of meat loss from sticking. To be fair, this may be able to be reduced or eliminated by using some non-stick spray or maybe even as the grates get more seasoned. On a positive note, my steaks have never once stuck while searing, so time will tell as I attempt to cook more things aside from steaks and a few burgers.
The second negative is that large opening in the back of the grille. Most all gas grilles have an opening at the back. However, this grille has an opening roughly 3x larger than my current gas grille. This large hole makes it difficult to get a good cook on your food with a little breeze blowing. You must be cognizant of the wind direction and aim the grille appropriately. During my first couple of cooks using the grille on a slightly breezy day, resulted in flame-outs even on the highest heat setting. This is something that I never had happen on my much cheaper grille bought from Big Orange. I was also hoping the large vent would help control the heat in the unit while using it on the lower heat settings, something my current grille and I both struggle with. But it does not. Even on the lowest setting, I routinely see temps rising to 450 degrees.
Lastly, is the price. Does the aluminum construction of the grille really justify a 2 – 4 times price difference to a commonly available competitor? Time will tell. If this grille lasts substantially longer, then maybe. So, I am giving the grille 4 stars because of its unique design and sturdy construction. But, it honestly doesn’t do anything more or better than my current gas grille does.
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Sit back, relax and watch movies with this Epson video projector. It offers 3,300 lumens of color & white brightness to ensure vibrant, accurate colors, and its HD resolution delivers crisp image quality at 1080p. This Epson video projector lets you connect a Blu-ray player or gaming console via an HDMI input for smooth streaming of your favorite media.
Customer Rating
4
Packs a bright picture in a small package
on November 27, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
UNIQUE FEATURES
Bright 3300 lumen output
1080p Full HD resolution
Good color and brightness uniformity
VERY impressive 12000-hour lamp life in Economy Mode
Bright 3300 lumen output
1080p Full HD resolution
Good color and brightness uniformity
VERY impressive 12000-hour lamp life in Economy Mode
USE
The projector carries on the tradition of Epson providing a good quality product at reasonable prices.
The projector carries on the tradition of Epson providing a good quality product at reasonable prices.
The projector installs like all others. You can either place it on a level, flat surface or flip it upside down and hang it from the ceiling. Unlike other Epson offerings, placement is of particular importance, as this unit does not provide any form of lens adjustment. There is no Zoom, Horizontal, or Vertical lens shift. So, obtaining the desired screen size is determined solely by the distance of the projector from the screen. Placement is also critical, as with all projectors, you want to eliminate the need to make any keystone corrections (though, this unit has both a horizontal and vertical keystone correction, if necessary).
The 880 has a limited number of inputs for operation. The only available inputs are USB-A, USB-B, and a single HDMI input. Though, the input selection is quite limited, I personally had no issues. I use an A/V receiver to control input switching, so a single HDMI input is all that is needed. If you don’t have the convenience of a dedicated AVR to do switching and have a lot of different source devices, an HDMI switcher may be in order.
Quite honestly, a home cinema-oriented projector is about one thing: bringing the movie theater experience home. This projector, though not perfect, fills the bill nicely. Long story long: I haven’t seen a projector at this price point deliver a picture with this much brightness. Epson rates light output at 3300 lumens at that seems spot on. It can compete with my Epson 5040 and 3800 in terms of sheer brightness. While all is good on light output, the projector does struggle with contrast ratio. Dark colored objects do get washed out fairly quickly, as the unit struggles with fine detail in dark scenes, even with the Dynamic Iris turned on. To be totally fair to Epson, this is an issue that all LCD projectors struggle with to a varying degree. Some do better at it than others. Is it a deal breaker for this unit? No. Quite honestly, if I wasn’t able to do a side by side comparison with an Epson 3800, I may not ever have noticed the extent of the weakness.
Out of the box picture quality is quite nice. The default settings are pleasing, without being over-exaggerated. Projecting an image to my dedicated 120” screen showed good brightness and color uniformity throughout the image. Again, the projector does struggle with darkly filmed movies, but can hold its own in bright scenes and sports. On a positive note, this projector handles sports very well. Even though it is only a 60Hz display, I noticed no jagged artifacts during fast sports scenes that even some of the best TV’s can struggle with. Well done!
NEGATIVES
Fan Noise. The fan on this model is very loud. Much louder than on my Epson 3800 and Epson 5040. I use Bright Cinema and Eco mode during normal use on my 3800. The fan is not unreasonably loud and is drowned out by the noise on whatever soundtrack is on in the theater, whether it be a video game, movie, music, etc., even with HDR enabled. However, the fan noise on the 880 is always present and noticeable. It can be tempered quite a bit by the careful selection of picture modes, but even then, it is roughly twice as loud as my 3800 (not measured with a meter, just a seat of the pants guesstimate). I find the projector very distracting on Bright Cinema, even with Eco mode engaged. The only way I can make the projector quiet enough to tolerate is by using normal Cinema mode with Eco mode selected. Thankfully, brightness is still sufficient, even if the projector loses some pop in brightness and color.
Fan Noise. The fan on this model is very loud. Much louder than on my Epson 3800 and Epson 5040. I use Bright Cinema and Eco mode during normal use on my 3800. The fan is not unreasonably loud and is drowned out by the noise on whatever soundtrack is on in the theater, whether it be a video game, movie, music, etc., even with HDR enabled. However, the fan noise on the 880 is always present and noticeable. It can be tempered quite a bit by the careful selection of picture modes, but even then, it is roughly twice as loud as my 3800 (not measured with a meter, just a seat of the pants guesstimate). I find the projector very distracting on Bright Cinema, even with Eco mode engaged. The only way I can make the projector quiet enough to tolerate is by using normal Cinema mode with Eco mode selected. Thankfully, brightness is still sufficient, even if the projector loses some pop in brightness and color.
Dynamic Iris. Epson uses this technology in many, if not all, their home cinema line of projectors and it is some great tech. In a nutshell, the projector analyzes the video source for brightness. The Auto Iris can limit light output in dimmer scenes. This is an awesome feature that helps to improve the contrast ratio, as all LCD projectors struggle with their black levels. This is kinda, sorta like local dimming on LCD TV’s. It works fairly well in the 880, but it is not without faults. I noticed a good deal of light pumping on fast scenes. Even with the Dynamic Iris setting at fast, it still struggles to find that perfect setting causing the picture to look like it pulsates at times. It seems to lag a little behind the image displayed. Also, the iris mechanism is LOUD. Much louder than it ever is on my 3800 and 5040. Imagine a quarter inch drive ratchet clicking away in the opposite direction of use. Turning off the Dynamic Iris function would eliminate this issue.
Firmware. Lastly, this projector needs a good firmware update. I think some of these annoyances can be lessened with a good firmware update. My previous Epson projectors exhibited some of these same issues after installation, though to a lesser degree. Future firmware updates helped shore up a lot of those issues over time. So, I have hopes that Epson can refine this product as well. I’m also hoping a future firmware update will fix the Lamp Life monitor of the machine. The first night alone, the projector was used a good 6 hours, including a mixed bag of video games, movies, broadcast TV and YouTube videos. At the end of the night, the total lamp hours still equaled ZERO.
Remote. The supplied remote works well and controls all the necessary functions of the projector. But, I sure would like to see a backlit remote, or even a remote with glow-in-the-dark buttons. The small buttons and print on this remote are nearly impossible to see during a movie.
CONCLUSIONS
Though this unit is not without it flaws and shortcomings, I think it represents a good product from Epson. The images are bright, vibrant, and have good uniformity. While, the projector struggles with darker scenes, these issues disappear with normal content. Quite frankly, this projector performs better, if not much better, than similarly priced products from Epson’s competitors I’ve experienced.
Though this unit is not without it flaws and shortcomings, I think it represents a good product from Epson. The images are bright, vibrant, and have good uniformity. While, the projector struggles with darker scenes, these issues disappear with normal content. Quite frankly, this projector performs better, if not much better, than similarly priced products from Epson’s competitors I’ve experienced.
I also feel many of the issues I experienced with this unit could be lessened or eliminated with a well-engineered firmware update. As it stands now, I would give the projector itself a 3-star rating, but the image quality would easily justify a 4-star rating. I will fully admit that I am a snob when it comes to picture quality and it does take a lot to impress me. With that, I do think this would serve as a great entry-level projector for most folks.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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The Samsung Jet™ 75 Complete Cordless Stick Vacuum features a lightweight and maneuverable design and a removable battery that can be easily swapped* for extended cleaning time up to 60 minutes. Compatible with Samsung Clean Station™ for mess-free, automatic emptying of the hygienic dust bin. *Second battery sold separately.
Customer Rating
5
Quiet Vacuum with a lot of accessories
on November 14, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
KEY FEATURES
3 Power Levels
Diagnostic Indicators
99.999% Filtration
Outstanding Battery Runtime
3 Power Levels
Diagnostic Indicators
99.999% Filtration
Outstanding Battery Runtime
USE
Long story short, the Samsung Jet 75 is an excellent stick vacuum with an impressive runtime of up to 60 minutes.
Long story short, the Samsung Jet 75 is an excellent stick vacuum with an impressive runtime of up to 60 minutes.
The Jet 75 includes a good number of accessories. I have stick vacuums from Samsung’s primary competitor and this vacuum includes more options than a similarly priced competitor’s model. Included with the kit are: Mini Motorized Tool, Crevice Tool, Brush Tool, Turbo Floor Tool, Soft Motorized Floor Tool, Flexible Extension Hose, and a Wall Mount. All the accessories have a nice, premium feel and are easily interchanged, that latch and click solidly into place.
At 6 pounds, the vacuum can be used for extended periods of time without feeling overly heavy or burdensome at the end of sweeping. One of the best features of the vacuum and its attachments are that the turbo brush heads can rotate up to 180 degrees. This easily allows the brush head to go under furniture for easy cleaning. A VERY NICE FEATURE. The vacuum has an on/off button that controls the cleaning modes and power of the unit. Low, Medium, High, and Wet. It must be noted that the Jet 75 does not include the accessories to utilize the Wet cleaning mode of the vacuum, as Samsung claims, per their website, this accessory is only available on the Jet 90.
I had never given it any thought about not having a trigger to turn the vacuum on and off. This is the first vacuum without a trigger. I must admit, now that I don’t have a trigger for control, I like it better than I thought. The ability to change the power level with just a button click and not having to hold down the trigger is a welcome change. I don’t think I would want to go back.
Samsung claims up to 60 minutes of runtime out of a fully charged battery (recharging can take up to 3.5 hours). While I originally thought that was just a marketing claim, I can say that goal is not out of reach. A majority of my home is hardwood. I can vacuum all my hardwood and tile floors, using the Medium power setting and the soft, motorized turbo brush and still have 2 out of 3 bars remaining on the battery. I have more than enough power left to vacuum the remaining carpeted rooms with the Turbo Motorized Brush without needing to charge between. Very Impressive. This is something I cannot get anywhere close to with my current competitor’s stick vacuum.
NEGATIVES
While I have no issues using the vacuum, taller members of my family seem to feel the vacuum could be a little longer / taller. Family members over 6 feet seem to think they need to bend over more than competitor’s products to keep the brush heads in the proper contact with the floor. However, those of us not more 6 feet tall, don’t seem to have any of those issues. So, to be fair to Samsung, it could just be a user issue.
While I have no issues using the vacuum, taller members of my family seem to feel the vacuum could be a little longer / taller. Family members over 6 feet seem to think they need to bend over more than competitor’s products to keep the brush heads in the proper contact with the floor. However, those of us not more 6 feet tall, don’t seem to have any of those issues. So, to be fair to Samsung, it could just be a user issue.
While I really like the soft, motorized brush head for my hardwoods and tile floors, I feel that it has some issues sucking up debris on the backward sweeping stroke. Using the soft brush head on the medium power setting, the motorized tool seems to do a better job at removing dirt and debris from the hardwoods on the forward cleaning stroke than when pulling it back toward me while sweeping. Again, to be fair, this could possibly be remedied by using the High-power setting. But that would prevent me from being able to clean an entire story on a single charge. I must point out, that this tool has ZERO issues getting that dirt and debris on the forward stroke. So, I believe it to be a function of rotation of the roller and the way it covers my hand scraped hardwoods.
CONCLUSIONS
I like this vacuum. It is considerably quieter than its competitor and delivers an impressive amount of runtime off a single charge. The vacuum does good job on hardwood, tile, and even carpet. The Motorized Turbo Brush will pick the carpet’s nap back up just a good as my full-size electric vacuum. Based on the included accessories, the multiple power levels that increase usable time, and good overall build quality, I have no issues recommending this over Samsung’s competitors.
I like this vacuum. It is considerably quieter than its competitor and delivers an impressive amount of runtime off a single charge. The vacuum does good job on hardwood, tile, and even carpet. The Motorized Turbo Brush will pick the carpet’s nap back up just a good as my full-size electric vacuum. Based on the included accessories, the multiple power levels that increase usable time, and good overall build quality, I have no issues recommending this over Samsung’s competitors.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Pure One S11 is a high-performance cordless vacuum. It features iLoop™ Smart Sensor Technology which senses hidden dirt, dust, hair, pollen, and dander, and automatically adjusts suction power in real-time for an effortless cleaning experience. Pure One S11’s full-size multi-tasker power brush ensures you get a deep, thorough clean of carpets, bare floors, fabric, and more. Get up to 130W of suction power in Max mode.
Customer Rating
5
One of the Most Sophisticated Stick Vacuums
on October 28, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
HIGHLIGHTS
Auto Cleaning Mode
Wi-Fi Enabled
Tineco App Enabled
Support for Amazon Alexa
Constantly Monitored Cleaning Performance and Indicator
Auto Cleaning Mode
Wi-Fi Enabled
Tineco App Enabled
Support for Amazon Alexa
Constantly Monitored Cleaning Performance and Indicator
SETUP
Initial set-up was comparable to all other stick vacuums. Some minimal assembly is required. But, easy enough that instructions really aren’t required. Everything just clicks together easily and without fuss. The vacuum comes with a good assortment of tools and attachments. The only thing that makes this vacuum more difficult than all the other stick vacuums that I own (I own 3 stick vacuums from 3 different manufacturers) is that this Tineco is app enabled. To get the most out of the vacuum, you need to install the Tineco app on your tablet or smartphone. Luckily, Tineco has done an excellent job on the app and the installation on my Galaxy Note 20 went without issue. Setting up the vacuum to work with the app and your home wi-fi took quite a few steps, but the app walks you through the entire process and everything went smoothly and trouble-free. Something that isn’t often said, but Tineco should be given a shout out for doing their homework.
Initial set-up was comparable to all other stick vacuums. Some minimal assembly is required. But, easy enough that instructions really aren’t required. Everything just clicks together easily and without fuss. The vacuum comes with a good assortment of tools and attachments. The only thing that makes this vacuum more difficult than all the other stick vacuums that I own (I own 3 stick vacuums from 3 different manufacturers) is that this Tineco is app enabled. To get the most out of the vacuum, you need to install the Tineco app on your tablet or smartphone. Luckily, Tineco has done an excellent job on the app and the installation on my Galaxy Note 20 went without issue. Setting up the vacuum to work with the app and your home wi-fi took quite a few steps, but the app walks you through the entire process and everything went smoothly and trouble-free. Something that isn’t often said, but Tineco should be given a shout out for doing their homework.
USE
The vacuum is quite interesting to use. It has more features than many of its competitors’ products. The most appealing part of this vacuum, in my opinion, is the unique Auto mode. The vacuum starts each cleaning session in Auto mode. Using some sensors and techno wizardry, it auto adjusts its power settings based on cleaning needs. The vacuum analyzes the debris being taken in and displays the floors’ dirtiness on a ring at the top of the motorized head. It starts at blue, indicating a clean environment and will gradually change to red as it encounters dirtier floors and air. The dirtier the floor, the more power the vacuum will devote to cleaning and the redder the ring becomes. The auto setting can be manually overridden by a conveniently located MAX button on the top of the vacuum, if so desired.
The vacuum is quite interesting to use. It has more features than many of its competitors’ products. The most appealing part of this vacuum, in my opinion, is the unique Auto mode. The vacuum starts each cleaning session in Auto mode. Using some sensors and techno wizardry, it auto adjusts its power settings based on cleaning needs. The vacuum analyzes the debris being taken in and displays the floors’ dirtiness on a ring at the top of the motorized head. It starts at blue, indicating a clean environment and will gradually change to red as it encounters dirtier floors and air. The dirtier the floor, the more power the vacuum will devote to cleaning and the redder the ring becomes. The auto setting can be manually overridden by a conveniently located MAX button on the top of the vacuum, if so desired.
One item that I had already chalked up to being a useless gimmick was the brush roll mounted LED lights. Tineco states they are there to help see dirt, especially useful on hardwoods, tile, and laminate. I thought, yeah right. Just a battery drainer. While they must affect overall battery life some, they are in fact, quite useful. I was wrong. They do provide a well-lit path of where you sweep, and I was able to see spots I had missed while sweeping in environments that are less than ideally lit. Those lights turned out to be a nice touch after all.
The Tineco app is well designed and monitors nearly every aspect of the vacuum and its performance. The app reports battery level, cleaning time, dust min capacity, pre-filter dirtiness, and cleaning performance. Like I stated earlier, the app is very well designed and has worked flawlessly. One feature that I especially like was that once you have the vacuum fully configured and registered, the app even provides you links to the Tineco website for things like user manuals. It’s thoughtful items like these that go a long way in the user experience.
NEGATIVES
The wheels on the motorized floor tool squeak during use. It doesn’t impact performance in any way, but it is annoying.
The wheels on the motorized floor tool squeak during use. It doesn’t impact performance in any way, but it is annoying.
Tineco’s competitors all have filters that are cleanable and reusable with no recommended replacement time or schedule. While Tineco’s pre-filter is washable, Tineco recommends replacement approximately every 6 months. This will increase the overall cost of ownership.
I’m on the taller side, approximately 6’ 1” if I actually take the time to stand up straight. I feel like I need to bend over more to the get the motorized floor brush at just the correct angle to work properly than I do with competitors’ products. To be fair, I’m not sure if the Tineco is better designed and provides a better seal to the floors’ surface this way or if Tineco’s competitors products are just more forgiving.
The battery life is very short on the MAX setting. After about 10 minutes of use, the battery reports back it is down to approximately 33% remaining. I state this, because I prefer to use the vacuum on MAX when vacuuming carpets with the motorized head. The vacuum seems easier to push and use on the MAX setting than it does on the lower powered AUTO setting. If you feel as though I do, purchasing a second battery may be worth it. Luckily, the Tineco wall mount provides for a spot to charge a second battery simultaneously while charging the main unit. Kudos for that feature.
CONCLUSIONS
There is a lot to like about this vacuum. It does an excellent job at its intended purpose. My floors look great after use. The brush head does a very good job at picking up the carpet’s nap. This is something my other stick vacuums often struggle with. The motorized brush head seems to do equally as good on my hardwoods as it does on carpets. It was sucking up light debris well ahead of the rollers on my hardwood floors. Something I have NEVER seen with its competitors.
There is a lot to like about this vacuum. It does an excellent job at its intended purpose. My floors look great after use. The brush head does a very good job at picking up the carpet’s nap. This is something my other stick vacuums often struggle with. The motorized brush head seems to do equally as good on my hardwoods as it does on carpets. It was sucking up light debris well ahead of the rollers on my hardwood floors. Something I have NEVER seen with its competitors.
The AUTO mode is one of its best features. Like I stated earlier, I own sticks from 3 different manufacturers. While my others have at a minimum of 2 different power modes, this is the only one I’ve seen that constantly monitors cleaning requirements for you and dynamically adjusts itself. Auto mode helps preserve battery life, ensuring the longest run times as possible. Very cool.
Do you really need all this tech on a vacuum? While unique, all these features are active the entire time while in use and will for sure be using precious battery life. Is the trade off for all the bells and whistles worth it at the cost of decreased battery life? After all, do you really need to look at your phone to see that the dust bin is 60% full or the pre-filter needs cleaned? These parts of the vacuum are transparent, I can see their status just by looking at them as I snap it in to charge. Do I really need Alexa to tell me if the battery is charged or if the dust bin needs emptied?
In the end, I have been impressed with its performance on all my floors (hardwoods, carpet, and tile). It has a lot of unique and interesting features that set it apart from Tineco’s competition. I happen to like all the tech. I fully admit that I’m a sucker for all the buttons and fancy lights, but all of it really is just fluff and unnecessary for a vacuum.
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I would recommend this to a friend!
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Enhance your TV experience without compromising your room’s design with the Sonance MAG SSTVAUDIO Sonos Powered 2.0-Channel Soundbar Alternative. This premium 2.0-channel TV audio solution combines LCR in-wall speakers, a Sonos Amp, and a behind-the-TV Sonance wall box, delivering stunning clarity and deep sound while keeping all electronics hidden from view. Designed as a discreet soundbar alternative, this system features two MAG6 LCR speakers with pivoting silk dome tweeters and dual 6.5" woofers, ideal for media rooms, living rooms, and TV audio upgrades. The included Sonos Amp powers your speakers, supports AirPlay 2, and connects directly to your TV via HDMI ARC, making it easy to control everything with your existing TV remote. The included PowerBridge kit and Sonance wall box conceal the Sonos amp, wiring, and even streaming devices like Apple TV®, Roku®, Amazon Fire TV Stick®, and Google TV Streamer®, eliminating the need for TV stands or exposed cables. Paintable grilles blend into your walls, making this system ideal for any TV in any room of your home. With a design-first approach, the MAG SSTVAUDIO is the ultimate in-wall TV speaker system for design-conscious homes.
Customer Rating
4
Excellent Audio Performance / Disappointing Mount
on October 17, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
INSTALLATION
Let me start off by admitting that I am in no way a professional installer. Not even close. I do consider myself an avid DIY’er and not afraid to tackle most home theater installations, wiring changes, light remodel items, etc. That being said, if you don’t consider yourself a moderate to advanced DIY’er or are not comfortable with basic electrical or wiring, this kit is best off left installed by a professional.
Let me start off by admitting that I am in no way a professional installer. Not even close. I do consider myself an avid DIY’er and not afraid to tackle most home theater installations, wiring changes, light remodel items, etc. That being said, if you don’t consider yourself a moderate to advanced DIY’er or are not comfortable with basic electrical or wiring, this kit is best off left installed by a professional.
When presented with this kit, I found the concept to be very appealing. One complete kit that organized your stuff behind your wall mounted flat panel TV. It includes an awesome Sonos amp, 2 very nice Sonance Mag 6 LCR speakers, and everything you need to get power into the box. Unfortunately, this kit is no exception.
Sonance did their homework when designing the dimensions of the metal box. The box is approximately 13 inches wide, by 14 inches tall and about 3 inches deep. It is designed to fit in an ordinary 2 x 4 studded wall cavity where the studs are 16 inches on center. A wall utilizing 2 x 4 studs, 16 inches on center is pretty much the standard for building codes across the U.S. Understand, that if you choose to mount this box on an exterior wall, you will need to remove most all insulation from behind the metal box and from behind the speakers to get them to fit. Choose your mounting location wisely.
Sonance did their homework when designing the dimensions of the metal box. The box is approximately 13 inches wide, by 14 inches tall and about 3 inches deep. It is designed to fit in an ordinary 2 x 4 studded wall cavity where the studs are 16 inches on center. A wall utilizing 2 x 4 studs, 16 inches on center is pretty much the standard for building codes across the U.S. Understand, that if you choose to mount this box on an exterior wall, you will need to remove most all insulation from behind the metal box and from behind the speakers to get them to fit. Choose your mounting location wisely.
MOUNTING SYSTEM
Like I stated earlier, the metal in-wall mounting system was of great interest to me. I have always wanted a tidier way to mount items behind my flat panel TV’s. I’ve always prided myself in my abilities to mount my TV’s and hide any and all wiring, making for a complete and custom looking installation. But, in the end, there is only just so much room behind a wall mounted TV and while I am always able to get power, cable, and ethernet to my TV’s without running any unsightly cabling up the walls, there are always compromises behind the TV for mounting things like cable boxes, etc. I couldn’t wait to try this out. Cutting open the shipping box honestly left me quite disappointed. My hopes of a fancy mounting solution with custom brackets, modular components, and specifically engineered accessories were immediately shattered. Quite honestly, the only unique product to this system is the single, flat bracket that mounts to the back of the Sonos amp to mount it in the box. Everything else seems like an afterthought. Reinforcing that opinion was the fact that everything besides the speakers, mounting box, and amp were just thrown in bottom of the product’s box. I had to dig through the box to get all the loose screws, grommets, spacers, etc. They didn’t fall out of a plastic bag or anything, they were literally just loose items, thrown in the bottom of the kit. Not a good start.
Like I stated earlier, the metal in-wall mounting system was of great interest to me. I have always wanted a tidier way to mount items behind my flat panel TV’s. I’ve always prided myself in my abilities to mount my TV’s and hide any and all wiring, making for a complete and custom looking installation. But, in the end, there is only just so much room behind a wall mounted TV and while I am always able to get power, cable, and ethernet to my TV’s without running any unsightly cabling up the walls, there are always compromises behind the TV for mounting things like cable boxes, etc. I couldn’t wait to try this out. Cutting open the shipping box honestly left me quite disappointed. My hopes of a fancy mounting solution with custom brackets, modular components, and specifically engineered accessories were immediately shattered. Quite honestly, the only unique product to this system is the single, flat bracket that mounts to the back of the Sonos amp to mount it in the box. Everything else seems like an afterthought. Reinforcing that opinion was the fact that everything besides the speakers, mounting box, and amp were just thrown in bottom of the product’s box. I had to dig through the box to get all the loose screws, grommets, spacers, etc. They didn’t fall out of a plastic bag or anything, they were literally just loose items, thrown in the bottom of the kit. Not a good start.
Like I stated, everything else aside from the mounting box and back plate of the amp are just plain off the shelf parts. Not that it is necessarily a negative. Quite honestly, maybe I had my expectations set too high. I had assumed at the price point, this was some fancy well engineered kit, but again, fully admit that was just my expectations, so that is on me. For example, while the small power strip fit perfectly in the bottom of the box, the solution sent to get power into the concealment from your existing power in your house is unnecessarily complicated and quiet honestly a waste of time. I didn’t use any of it. I found it difficult and cumbersome trying to get all those pieces routed and connected, so much so, that I went to “Big Orange” and bought a 15amp outlet, cover plate, and old work box (you know the ones that have the little ears that swing out when you tighten them in a whole in your drywall). Simpler, easier, more professional looking. Done.
AUDIO PERFORMANCE
Luckily the audio performance saved this system from a 2-star rating. This is not only my first Sonos product, it is my first set of Sonance speakers. I’ve seen Sonance around for years, but have never given them much of a shot. I nearly always choose a Sonance competitor when I set up a new theater for myself or friends. My go-to speakers used to be a boutique brand, sold only at custom A/V installers, before they branched out to Magnolias and other authorized retailers. While I wouldn’t say I’m an audiophile, per se, I definitely consider myself an audio snob. I would rather not listen to any music than to listen to music through a cheap set of speakers with metallic tweeters so harsh, they make your head hurt. No thanks!
Luckily the audio performance saved this system from a 2-star rating. This is not only my first Sonos product, it is my first set of Sonance speakers. I’ve seen Sonance around for years, but have never given them much of a shot. I nearly always choose a Sonance competitor when I set up a new theater for myself or friends. My go-to speakers used to be a boutique brand, sold only at custom A/V installers, before they branched out to Magnolias and other authorized retailers. While I wouldn’t say I’m an audiophile, per se, I definitely consider myself an audio snob. I would rather not listen to any music than to listen to music through a cheap set of speakers with metallic tweeters so harsh, they make your head hurt. No thanks!
The Sonance speakers sound quite good. Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised! Are they perfect? No. But they do sound very good. Each Sonance speaker houses two 6.5-inch glass fiber cones and a 1-inch silk dome tweeter. Sonance claims frequency response is 45Hz to 20kHz with a 90dB sensitivity. That is pretty much par for the course for this type of speaker and similar to Sonance’s competitors. Reviewing speakers is difficult. Everyone’s opinions are subjective and what I like, isn’t necessarily what the next person will like. To me, I like the performance a well-designed electrostatic tweeter, followed by an aluminum (or better yet, titanium) dome tweeter. Again, it has to be well designed. If not, those hard-domed tweeters suck and ruin your music. Done correctly, a hard-domed tweeter has a much brighter, more detailed, and clearer top end than any soft dome (again, this is my opinion). The Sonance is no exception. However, for a soft domed tweeter, these speakers sound great up top. They are more laid back and subtle than what I own from their competitor, but what they give up in brightness, they make up for in clarity. The only real flaw I could find in the Sonance speaker is an odd shallowness I hear right around the crossover frequency of the tweeter and woofers. Vocals get shallower in that part of the frequency spectrum. However, once the frequency rises above or below that odd crossover-ish area, things get back to normal. This is one of the few in-walls I have had (I’ve had a lot from many different manufacturers) that have decent extension in the lower octaves. I’ve seen a lot of speakers fall off sharply below around 200Hz and their bass just seams to fizzle before a sub jumps in and saves the day, but these Sonance speakers do a great job of maintaining the full-bodied sound down in the lower octaves, making for a very natural and smooth transition to the sub (not included). Job well done!
FINAL THOUGHTS
If I were judging the product simply on the mounting box and accessories, I’d probably give this product a 2. The only really custom piece in the whole kit is the one lone bracket that holds the amp to the mounting box. Everything else seems like an afterthought. Additionally, once the Sonos amp is mounted in the box, there isn’t room for much of anything else. Not a DirectTV receiver, nothing. I was able to squeeze in a 5-port gigabit switch, but that was about it.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If I were judging the product simply on the mounting box and accessories, I’d probably give this product a 2. The only really custom piece in the whole kit is the one lone bracket that holds the amp to the mounting box. Everything else seems like an afterthought. Additionally, once the Sonos amp is mounted in the box, there isn’t room for much of anything else. Not a DirectTV receiver, nothing. I was able to squeeze in a 5-port gigabit switch, but that was about it.
Thankfully, the amp and Sonance speakers steal the show, and so they should. The Sonos amp works great and provides plenty of power for the Sonance speakers. You can push these speakers to fairly loud volumes without the amp sounding thin and strained. The speakers’ sensitivity and power rating pair nicely to the specs of the amp. Like I stated earlier, these speakers aren’t perfect, none are. Speaker opinions are like belly buttons, everybody has one and some have more than one opinion. At the end of the day, I think any one who buys the system will enjoy the flexibility it offers. The Sonos infrastructure is excellent and works flawlessly. Music, even lossy music, sounds great on the Sonance / Sonos system. Add to that, the Amp has an HDMI input for hooking up to your ARC port on your TV, just makes the system that much better. If that wasn’t enough, the Sonos infrastructure allows you to add a full surround sound set up using this configuration as a starting point, is just icing on the cake. If all you have used is your TV’s speakers for audio, you will never go back after getting this system. It will spoil you instantly.
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eufy Security Wired 2K Video Doorbell. 2K Resolution, 5-Day Continuous Video Recording (CVR) on Secure Local Storage, No Monthly Fees, Human Detection, 2-way Audio, and Free Wireless Chime included.
Customer Rating
5
Modest Improvements Make This a Winner
on October 15, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
INSTALLATION
This doorbell requires AC voltage to operate properly. It does not have a battery backup like other Eufy products. Fortunately, if you already have an existing doorbell, it will most likely operate at the required 24V AC that this unit requires. However, you should check voltage with an appropriate meter prior to installation to verify.
This doorbell requires AC voltage to operate properly. It does not have a battery backup like other Eufy products. Fortunately, if you already have an existing doorbell, it will most likely operate at the required 24V AC that this unit requires. However, you should check voltage with an appropriate meter prior to installation to verify.
Once, I removed my old doorbell, installation took just a matter of minutes. Eufy includes several pigtails to make installation into your existing system frustration free. Anker’s instructions are easy to follow and they cover everything from how to install the doorbell, to how to modify and/or test your existing chime (a wireless chime is also included in the kit and works flawlessly), if you have any issues. All said and done, this hassle-free installation took about 10 minutes total.
EUFY APP
This is where Anker has spent a great deal of time making this an outstanding product. The installation and configuration of the doorbell couldn’t get much easier. Was it 100% issue free? No. But it was 99.9% issue free and a very well thought out and pleasant experience. Other manufacturers should do themselves a favor and sample the well-designed Eufy app. The one and only issue I encountered was a firmware update that wouldn’t install. For some reason, the app notified me that the doorbell needed an update, but wouldn’t push it to the device. The doorbell checks for updates every single night and updates itself automatically. The first night after installation, the doorbell downloaded its update installed it without issue. Weird.
This is where Anker has spent a great deal of time making this an outstanding product. The installation and configuration of the doorbell couldn’t get much easier. Was it 100% issue free? No. But it was 99.9% issue free and a very well thought out and pleasant experience. Other manufacturers should do themselves a favor and sample the well-designed Eufy app. The one and only issue I encountered was a firmware update that wouldn’t install. For some reason, the app notified me that the doorbell needed an update, but wouldn’t push it to the device. The doorbell checks for updates every single night and updates itself automatically. The first night after installation, the doorbell downloaded its update installed it without issue. Weird.
The app seamlessly walks you through the entire installation and configuration process. The app seems to touch on everything. I can’t really think of any issues left uncovered during installation. Anker did an outstanding job. The app covers everything from checking for the proper voltages, to setting activity zones, to programming what the doorbell looks at every day, etc. A user doesn’t need to read and interpret technical jargon. The app goes through step by step on how to properly configure your doorbell to get the most accurate notifications with minimal false alarms. Everything is represented by a series of pictures and examples. I hate to use this term, but it is literally fool-proof.
PERFORMANCE
This is my second Eufy doorbell. My previous Eufy doorbell has worked flawlessly since installation. This is now my second Eufy doorbell and I now have one on each of my entrances. I had owned Eufy’s competitor’s product for quiet some time before switching. I was hesitant at first, but am glad I did. I really do prefer Anker’s product over their main competitor. The images are clearer and have a higher resolution (2560 x 1920) vs (1920 x 1080). It is not just a higher resolution picture or image that makes the difference. The images are more detailed and less washed out in bright light or the dark of night. The Eufy uses WDR (Wide Dynamic Range) video processing and captures far more details in bright and dark scenes than my previous Pro model from their competitor.
This is my second Eufy doorbell. My previous Eufy doorbell has worked flawlessly since installation. This is now my second Eufy doorbell and I now have one on each of my entrances. I had owned Eufy’s competitor’s product for quiet some time before switching. I was hesitant at first, but am glad I did. I really do prefer Anker’s product over their main competitor. The images are clearer and have a higher resolution (2560 x 1920) vs (1920 x 1080). It is not just a higher resolution picture or image that makes the difference. The images are more detailed and less washed out in bright light or the dark of night. The Eufy uses WDR (Wide Dynamic Range) video processing and captures far more details in bright and dark scenes than my previous Pro model from their competitor.
The notifications are slick too. Anker uses an AI chip in the doorbell that can distinguish what kind of activity the doorbell is capturing. When it sends you a text, it will tell you if it is an automobile or a human. If it is a human, the doorbell will analyze the image and give you an up close image of the person’s face, or if it can’t get it, will give you an image of the person in the text. It works nearly perfectly. One thing I do appreciate is the lack of redundant notifications. The competitor’s product would send me tons of notifications repeatedly. For example, if I was playing catch with my son, Eufy’s competitor would send me an alert every single time we would pass within viewing distance of the door. Same thing when I would mow. Every strip I cut, generated notification after notification. I don’t get that with the Eufy. I get one notification when it first senses an event and then similar events get ignored without my intervention. Not sure how Anker does it, but it works, and works great!
ISSUES
There are only 2 issues with this doorbell that I can think of:
There are only 2 issues with this doorbell that I can think of:
The first, and most significant issue is the lack of compatibility with the Eufy Homebase 2. Anker has promised compatibility is coming, but so far has not delivered. Why is this important? The Homebase 2 is a storage device that resides inside your house. It has 32GB of memory and records events from Eufy products. My older, battery powered doorbell uses this for its storage. This doorbell has 32GB of memory too, but it is built into the doorbell. So, if someone were slick enough, they could run up to your doorbell and snap it off with a large screwdriver. There goes your evidence.
The second complaint is that the doorbell seems a tad slow to respond at times. If someone runs quick enough to your door, the doorbell will occasionally miss an image or fail to record the event. I may be able to solve this with a tweak to the doorbell’s sensitivity, but aside from this issue, the doorbell works just the way I want it with minimal false alarms, so I hate to tweak the settings too much.
CONCLUSIONS
This is an excellent product. In my opinion, Anker has a real winner on their hands. They have designed a product that performs nearly flawlessly with an app and user experience that is second to none. The Eufy app is one of the few apps that work as well on Android as it does on iOS. Great job Anker!! Even better, is that Anker doesn’t require you to pay a monthly fee for video storage. With an excellent, well detailed image, great 2 way communications, and an outstanding installation experience, Anker’s Eufy doorbell is an excellent product!!! I won’t be going back to their competitor. Well done Anker!
This is an excellent product. In my opinion, Anker has a real winner on their hands. They have designed a product that performs nearly flawlessly with an app and user experience that is second to none. The Eufy app is one of the few apps that work as well on Android as it does on iOS. Great job Anker!! Even better, is that Anker doesn’t require you to pay a monthly fee for video storage. With an excellent, well detailed image, great 2 way communications, and an outstanding installation experience, Anker’s Eufy doorbell is an excellent product!!! I won’t be going back to their competitor. Well done Anker!
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Designed for the perfect puree. This KitchenAid® Variable Speed Corded Hand Blender features an 8" removable blending arm with 4-point stainless steel blade to blend everything from smoothies, to milk shakes, soups, sauces and so much more. It is easy to use with the variable speed trigger switch and includes a US patented removal pan guard to help protect your cookware. The 3-Cup BPA-Free Blending Jar with lid is great for individual blending jobs, and can be used to serve direct from or to store your blended creation for a later use.
Customer Rating
5
Sturdy, Well Designed Handheld
on September 16, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
The package includes the blender, a removable blade and drive unit (blending arm), protective cover for the blade and guard assembly, and a mixing container.
The eight inch blending arm connects to the motor housing with a simple, quarter turn lock. The ability to remove the blending arm for easy cleaning a thoughtful feature. It not only makes storage more compact, it also keeps you from inadvertently getting soap and water on the motor assembly. Also included in the box, is a plastic protector that snaps over the blade guard to help prevent scoring and scratching when using the blender with pots and pans. The plastic protector for the blade guard fits nicely and is secure when snapped in place, but I’m not sure how long it is going to last as it seems to bend quite a bit when fitting it over the blade guard.
The best feature of this blender has to be the variable speed trigger. KitchenAid seems to have put a good deal of effort getting the sensitivity of the trigger just right. The resistance of the trigger seems spot on and the ability to regulate the speed and power is easily accomplished without the trigger being too aggressive. I tried mixing a variety of different things and never had any issues with inadvertently applying too much power. Job well done.
This is a well-designed handheld blender. It has a nice heft without feeling overly heavy and difficult to use for an extended amount of time. All the components have an excellent fit and finish and make for a well-balanced, premium feeling product. The motor is very torquey and never had issues blending what I asked of it. The variable speed trigger is great. It has a nearly perfect balance of resistance and power application. A good product and recommended.
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Say goodbye to clutter and hello to this multi-functional toaster oven! Enjoy a variety of delicious dishes with ease and convenience using the Chefman Toast-Air Dual Function Air Fryer + Oven. No more heating up your kitchen with a full-size oven – get the same results as a traditional convection oven with the convenience of countertop cooking for faster and more evenly cooked food. This countertop convection oven is a useful tool in any busy kitchen with variable temperature controls and cooking functions to air fry, bake, broil, convection bake, toast, and more, as well as a temperature range from 200-450° F to set at the desired temperature. 9 preset options make any kitchen task easy, while the interior cooking light allows you to easily monitor cooking process. The extra-large 20-liter interior can fit up to 4 slices of toast, a 10-inch pizza, or most baking pans. With the highly efficient rapid-air technology and high-speed convection system, you can achieve an even, crispy fried texture using little to no oil. The rack positioning is designed for maximum space and even air flow – if using multiple racks, rotate them halfway through for best results. The air fryer function is perfect for cooking once-frozen leftover foods and making them taste fresh again. This counter oven features an option to select the desired level of toast, from light to dark. With a 60-minute countdown timer and ready signal bell, you always know when your food is ready. The air fry basket, flat wire rack, broil pan, and crumb tray are easily removable and dishwasher safe for convenience and quick clean up; plus, the non-stick interior and stainless-steel exterior wipe down easily. It’s easier than ever to conquer any cooking need with this toaster-oven air fryer!
Customer Rating
4
Nice Sized Air Fryer With Glaring Oversight
on September 12, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
UNIQUE FEATURES
Ability to Dual Bake Items
Easily Accessible Crumb Tray
Large Internal Cooking Area for Taller Items
Capacitive Touchscreen User Interface
Ability to Dual Bake Items
Easily Accessible Crumb Tray
Large Internal Cooking Area for Taller Items
Capacitive Touchscreen User Interface
USE
I’ll admit that I was late to the Air Fryer bandwagon. Having seen these do-it-all machines on infomercials, I dismissed them as sales gimmicks. I had the opportunity to obtain Chefman’s martial arts-based competitor’s product some time ago. I honestly don’t know why I didn’t buy one sooner. The air fryer has become my go-to device and has replaced many devices in my house. The air fryer’s unique versatility has earned it a top spot as one of the most used devices in my kitchen. Honestly, the only thing that limits its use, is the lack of vertical space for cooking. After seeing Chefman’s unique take on an Air Fryer, I had to try it. Chefman solved my issue of the space requirement, expanding the ability to cook taller items by almost 2 times its competitor. With the increased interior volume, I find that the Chefman requires approximately 10 – 20% longer cook times, but that is a fair trade off, if nothing else, just for the increased potential the Chefman offers.
I’ll admit that I was late to the Air Fryer bandwagon. Having seen these do-it-all machines on infomercials, I dismissed them as sales gimmicks. I had the opportunity to obtain Chefman’s martial arts-based competitor’s product some time ago. I honestly don’t know why I didn’t buy one sooner. The air fryer has become my go-to device and has replaced many devices in my house. The air fryer’s unique versatility has earned it a top spot as one of the most used devices in my kitchen. Honestly, the only thing that limits its use, is the lack of vertical space for cooking. After seeing Chefman’s unique take on an Air Fryer, I had to try it. Chefman solved my issue of the space requirement, expanding the ability to cook taller items by almost 2 times its competitor. With the increased interior volume, I find that the Chefman requires approximately 10 – 20% longer cook times, but that is a fair trade off, if nothing else, just for the increased potential the Chefman offers.
The capacitive touchscreen is sleek and functional and gives the Chefman Air Fryer a premium look and feel that its competitor can not match. The buttons and programming are responsive and without lag. The slick white lettering turns a royal shade of blue to indicate the cooking mode. It is an extremely attractive addition to the traditional air fryer and in my opinion, exudes a premium look and feel.
Chefman’s engineers appear to have really done their homework with this unit. This model includes several thoughtful design and engineering ideas sorely missed in its competitor’s model. One of the simplest ideas is the easily accessible crumb tray. One of my biggest gripes with Chefman’s competitor is the hassle to access the most often needed maintenance item: the crumb tray. Chefman wisely made the crumb tray accessible from the front of the unit with needing to open the cooking door or tipping the unit on its back. Awesome!
As equally as impressive, is that Chefman included the ability to the unit to be able to cook two items at the same time. A simple setting on the touchscreen enables the dual cooking mode. This is where the Chefman reigns over its competitor’s product. That huge increase in vertical volume pays dividends in the amount and type of foods that can be prepared. It’s a great design element and Chefman wisely includes multiple cooking grates and baskets with the unit.
As equally as impressive, is that Chefman included the ability to the unit to be able to cook two items at the same time. A simple setting on the touchscreen enables the dual cooking mode. This is where the Chefman reigns over its competitor’s product. That huge increase in vertical volume pays dividends in the amount and type of foods that can be prepared. It’s a great design element and Chefman wisely includes multiple cooking grates and baskets with the unit.
I have tried many different items in the machine prior to writing this review and I have not been disappointed in any of the results. The machine does a great job of evenly distributing the heat in the cooking area, ensuring items are cooked consistently regardless of their position on the cooking baskets or grates. Of the many items I’ve prepared, the two items that I test regardless of what else I prepare are: toast and take-home French fries. If an air fryer can’t do the basics, what’s the point of having it? I am happy to report, my first two test items didn’t leave me disappointed. Toast came out uniformly brown on the top and bottom. Take home French fries (often a sad outcome of the pandemic) turned out just as good. My French fry loving kid no longer complains about eating soggy take home fries. A quick heat up on the air fry option and the fries are as good as when they came out of the restaurant. Excellent!
NEGATIVES
As much as I like this unit, there are a few negatives that leave me scratching my head.
As much as I like this unit, there are a few negatives that leave me scratching my head.
The first is the overall design of the exhaust. This unit draws air in and exhausts out the top rear of the unit. While I think this top, rear airflow is a superior design compared to others, it makes me uncomfortable in how I place my air fryer. To maximum counter space, I like to keep my air fryer as far back on the counter as possible. This unit exhausts some very hot air out the back. So hot, that I keep it out much farther on the counter than I would have to with its competitor. Yes, I can move it back when its not in use and pull it out some when I go to use it, but I don’t like having to do that. Call it lazy, or whatever you would like, it is frustrating.
The second and biggest negative for the entire user experience is the lack of a physical knob or way of modifying your cooking. The problem is once you start the cooking process, whether it’s baking, air frying, toasting, etc. you are committed. With the Chefman’s competitor, if I need to change something quickly, I can just rotate a knob to add time or temp. Say, my toast isn’t brown enough, no biggie, twist the knob clockwise one detent and it adds 15 seconds to my cook time. French fries need a little more heat on air fry to get crispy? No problem. Give that same knob a twist to crank up the heat a few more degrees. There is no option for this on the Chefman. For example, if I select my toast doneness on 3 of 5 and decide with 10 seconds left, it needs a little more time, to get it just right, there is no way that I’ve seen to do it without starting all over and reprogramming another cooking / toasting cycle. It is the same with baking, frying, etc. That to me, is a glaring oversight.
CONCLUSIONS
It’s clear that Chefman has put in a lot of thought and effort into making a great air fryer. They have several unique and innovative features that make their product better than its competitors. The capacitive touch screen is sleek and elegant and automatically powers down the machine after a few minutes of non-use. It makes the whole product feel upscale. The easily accessible crumb tray is an outstanding design idea. As simple as a crumb tray is, the Chefman implementation is outstanding.
It’s clear that Chefman has put in a lot of thought and effort into making a great air fryer. They have several unique and innovative features that make their product better than its competitors. The capacitive touch screen is sleek and elegant and automatically powers down the machine after a few minutes of non-use. It makes the whole product feel upscale. The easily accessible crumb tray is an outstanding design idea. As simple as a crumb tray is, the Chefman implementation is outstanding.
This is a good product. There are many great ideas here. But like I stated in my review, it is the simple things that are important to me. There are two deal breakers here for me. One is the way the unit exhausts all the hot air directly out of the back. Feeling like I can’t safely place the unit toward the back of my countertop and use it, is a hassle. The second, is the lack of ability to make simple adjustments to the cooking time and temperature without having to start over from scratch. That is a glaring oversight and one I can’t believe made it through the design stage.
In the end, I would I recommend this product? Yes, I would. While it has its own unique set of quirks, it does its job well and has some unique elements missing from its competitors’ models.
In the end, I would I recommend this product? Yes, I would. While it has its own unique set of quirks, it does its job well and has some unique elements missing from its competitors’ models.
But, would I buy this for myself or my family? No, I would not. That complete lack of being able to make simple changes is a deal breaker.
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Vertuo Next takes the full range of Nespresso coffee styles even further with five cup sizes available to brew at the touch of a button. With a sleek new design made from 54% recycled plastics and stylish chrome accents, Vertuo Next will fit any kitchen and to go the extra mile, even connects to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to ensure its software is always up-to-date.
Customer Rating
5
Excellent Cup of Coffee That Rivals Gourmet Shops
on September 5, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
KEY FEATURES
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Connectivity for Updates
Automatic Adjustment of Brewing Parameters
Multiple Serving Sizes and Flavors
Milk Frother
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Connectivity for Updates
Automatic Adjustment of Brewing Parameters
Multiple Serving Sizes and Flavors
Milk Frother
INITIAL SET-UP
Initial set-up and cleaning were straight forward and very well documented in the owner’s manual. Initial set-up consisted of washing the reservoir tank and a lengthy self-flushing of the machine to rid itself of any possible internal contaminates. Approximately, 5 minutes later, the machine was clean and ready to make coffee.
Initial set-up and cleaning were straight forward and very well documented in the owner’s manual. Initial set-up consisted of washing the reservoir tank and a lengthy self-flushing of the machine to rid itself of any possible internal contaminates. Approximately, 5 minutes later, the machine was clean and ready to make coffee.
USE
Full Disclosure – I own Nespresso’s largest competitor’s machine and have been a happy customer for several years now. I have seen these Nespresso machines around for some time, but since I am invested in the competitor’s ecosystem, I did not pay Nespresso a great deal of attention. Why would I? It is just a new version of the same thing, right? Nope, wrong!
Full Disclosure – I own Nespresso’s largest competitor’s machine and have been a happy customer for several years now. I have seen these Nespresso machines around for some time, but since I am invested in the competitor’s ecosystem, I did not pay Nespresso a great deal of attention. Why would I? It is just a new version of the same thing, right? Nope, wrong!
The machine heats up very quickly. Far quicker than its competitor’s machine. The actual operation consists of nothing more than a locking lever and a brew button. You unlock the lever to open the lid, place the coffee pod in device, close the lid and lock it, press the brew button. That’s it. The machine uses some form of tech to read the pod that was inserted and adjusts its brewing parameters accordingly. Nespresso says that machine adapts the aeration, water flow, etc. to each unique pod. Whatever it does in the background, it works.
NEGATIVES
This thing is noisy. It makes twice the racket of its primary competitor’s machine. Nespresso spins each pod up to 7000 rpm for brewing and it sounds like it. Those first few minutes are annoying. But after the spin down, it is quieter than the competitor.
This thing is noisy. It makes twice the racket of its primary competitor’s machine. Nespresso spins each pod up to 7000 rpm for brewing and it sounds like it. Those first few minutes are annoying. But after the spin down, it is quieter than the competitor.
The Nespresso app is basically worthless, in my opinion. It really is not anything more than Nespresso’s way of selling more coffee. Granted, you need it to setup the machine on Wi-Fi so that it can receive firmware updates and register itself with Nespresso, but after that, the only thing the app is used for is to turn on the machine. It heats up so fast, turning it on ahead of time is pointless. So, after initial setup, the app just becomes a marketing tool.
The water tank resides on the back of the machine and its small size makes adding water to the reservoir frequent and inconvenient. I prefer the side mounted reservoir of its competitor. That machine does not require me to move the machine out each time I need to add water.
Lastly, is the high price and overall lack of variety of the pods. I can pick up the competitor’s coffee for less than 50 cents a pod anywhere and anytime, cheaper if I can catch a sale. The Nespresso Vertuo pods are at least a $1 per pod, if not more. I see that other companies are offering pods for Nespresso’s other machines, so I’m hopeful as time goes on, others will make compatible pods and the available variety and pricing will come down.
CONCLUSIONS
My negatives of this system are honestly just nit-picky. I concur with other reviewers’ sentiments that this product makes a superior cup of coffee compared to its competitor. I do wish Nespresso had more variety in their selections and the pods were a little less expensive. But, to be fair, I am sure it is just that I’m spoiled by all the selection and price offered by Nespresso’s competitor. They have enjoyed many more years to get their infrastructure established.
My negatives of this system are honestly just nit-picky. I concur with other reviewers’ sentiments that this product makes a superior cup of coffee compared to its competitor. I do wish Nespresso had more variety in their selections and the pods were a little less expensive. But, to be fair, I am sure it is just that I’m spoiled by all the selection and price offered by Nespresso’s competitor. They have enjoyed many more years to get their infrastructure established.
I have drunk coffee nearly every day since college, and do not consider myself a coffee snob. I can drink nearly any coffee. I am NOT the person to go out and spend $5 -$10 per day at the gourmet coffee shops and drive thru’s (though, I have tried the big national shops and many of the local shops). But, after using this machine a few times and sampling some various blends, this is a whole new way to make coffee. Quite honestly, this machine makes the smoothest, most flavorful coffee I have had to date. I am rapidly becoming THAT coffee snob and my tolerance for any kind of coffee or brew is rapidly deteriorating. Thanks Nespresso. Excellent Product!!
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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Freshen up your smile with this Procter & Gamble Oral-B iO Series 9 electric toothbrush. Seven smart modes, including daily clean, gum care and tongue clean, allow for personalized brushing, while Bluetooth connectivity lets you track your brushing with a smartphone. This Procter & Gamble Oral-B iO Series 9 electric toothbrush comes with four replacement brush heads for lasting use and a charging travel case for clean teeth on the go.
Customer Rating
5
Feature Rich Toothbrush That Cleans Great
on July 30, 2020
Posted by: NAMO
Key Features
7 Cleaning Modes (Daily Clean, Whitening, Gum Care, Sensitive, Intense, Super Sensitive, and Tongue Clean)
Oral-B Brushing App for iOS or Android
16 Zone Brushing Analysis
Li-Ion Battery with up to 12.5 days of battery life
7 Cleaning Modes (Daily Clean, Whitening, Gum Care, Sensitive, Intense, Super Sensitive, and Tongue Clean)
Oral-B Brushing App for iOS or Android
16 Zone Brushing Analysis
Li-Ion Battery with up to 12.5 days of battery life
INITIAL SET-UP
I must admit, the need to set up and configure a toothbrush seems odd to think and write about. But this is far from an ordinary toothbrush. Luckily, it appears Oral-B invested a considerable amount of time in their toothbrush and the associated app. Initial set-up and configuration were extremely simple and completely hassle-free. The app installed without issue and paired with my Samsung Galaxy S10 instantly. After charging the toothbrush to 100%, it was ready to start using.
I must admit, the need to set up and configure a toothbrush seems odd to think and write about. But this is far from an ordinary toothbrush. Luckily, it appears Oral-B invested a considerable amount of time in their toothbrush and the associated app. Initial set-up and configuration were extremely simple and completely hassle-free. The app installed without issue and paired with my Samsung Galaxy S10 instantly. After charging the toothbrush to 100%, it was ready to start using.
The toothbrush’s color display reports all relevant information relating to the brush (including battery level) and your brushing sessions. It is super intuitive. The toothbrush “wakes up” when you remove it from the case. You can just put the brush head on and brush, or open your Oral-B app for a guided brushing session. Either way, your teeth feel great afterward.
USE
Full disclosure: I have been an Oral-B customer for many years and have purchased several generations of their toothbrushes. Using manual toothbrushes resulted in frustrating trips to the dentist’s office while they spent a great deal of time scraping tartar from my gum lines. Sick of the creepy, grating sensation of the pick scraping my teeth, I decided to give Oral-B a go many years ago. So, when I saw this product, I was really looking forward to trying it out.
Full disclosure: I have been an Oral-B customer for many years and have purchased several generations of their toothbrushes. Using manual toothbrushes resulted in frustrating trips to the dentist’s office while they spent a great deal of time scraping tartar from my gum lines. Sick of the creepy, grating sensation of the pick scraping my teeth, I decided to give Oral-B a go many years ago. So, when I saw this product, I was really looking forward to trying it out.
Spoiler alert: I was not disappointed. This new iO9 toothbrush builds on the success of their previous generation of brushes with significant improvements. Most notably, this toothbrush now combines powered brushing with what Oral-B calls “micro vibrations”. These vibrations are supposedly inspired by dental instruments and results in a deeper, more thorough cleaning. In addition to the micro vibrations, Oral-B has redesigned the brush heads and the drive mechanism. While I am still happy with my previous generations, the new drive mechanism in the iO9 really is smoother during operation and has a more refined feel.
The Oral-B app is a great companion to the iO9, but is not necessary to use just to brush. If you choose to use the iO9 without the companion app, the toothbrush will notify you just like all other Oral-B toothbrushes after every 30 seconds of use. This notification is your signal to switch to the next section of your teeth. Note, this feature is disabled if you use the app. However, for best results, Oral-B recommends using the companion app. The app tracks your brushing performance in real time and follows the location of the toothbrush in your mouth. The app divides your teeth into 6 sections (3 top / 3 bottom) and the brush and app can tell which part of your mouth you are brushing. It is very slick and works nearly perfectly. As your teeth are brushed, the app uses an algorithm to determine your brushing performance. As you work on a section of your teeth, the app’s teeth will gradually go from a dark blue to white indicating that section is clean. Super slick!!!! The app also tracks what cleaning mode you are using along with the pressure you are exerting on the toothbrush.
At the end of your brushing, the app will evaluate the results of your session and give you a detailed breakdown of the entire time spent brushing. It has already proven to be quite enlightening. I discovered that I have been using way too much pressure during my brushing sessions throughout the years. The app is smart and gives you a graphical representation of your brushing performance on the various sections of your teeth. Like I said earlier, the results are highly informative.
NEGATIVES
There are only a couple of items that I can think of that could be improved upon, but do not necessarily detract from an overall great product.
There are only a couple of items that I can think of that could be improved upon, but do not necessarily detract from an overall great product.
The first is that I must have my location enabled on my Android phone for the app to pair with my toothbrush via Bluetooth. This seems unnecessary, as once the phone has paired with the toothbrush, it should not need location to re-pair.
The second is that the Oral-B app can use just a little more refinement. While using the Daily Clean function and the app, the app reported that my teeth were all clean and that I had done a great job brushing, even though I purposely hadn’t touched the inside of my teeth or the top surfaces of the molars. Not a deal breaker, but I am sure this is something Oral-B can fix with an app update and maybe a firmware update of the toothbrush.
Lastly, I wish the toothbrush and the brush head would snap into their travel case like my older generations of toothbrushes have done. The motor assembly and brush head just sit in this case and pop out when I open it.
CONCLUSIONS
I am extremely impressed with the performance of this product. Oral-B appears to have started with a clean sheet, holding nothing back during the redesign. There are meaningful improvements everywhere. These include a Li-Ion Battery, Color Display, Travel case with a built-in charger, real-time pressure indicator under the brush head (There is a color ring under the brush head. When using the appropriate brushing pressure, the ring is green. When the pressure builds, it goes from green to amber to red), just to name a few.
I am extremely impressed with the performance of this product. Oral-B appears to have started with a clean sheet, holding nothing back during the redesign. There are meaningful improvements everywhere. These include a Li-Ion Battery, Color Display, Travel case with a built-in charger, real-time pressure indicator under the brush head (There is a color ring under the brush head. When using the appropriate brushing pressure, the ring is green. When the pressure builds, it goes from green to amber to red), just to name a few.
The list of changes and differences between a “normal” Oral-B rechargeable toothbrush and this toothbrush is extensive. I have been a satisfied customer for many years now, and while perfectly happy with my older generation of brushes, this iO9 has raised the bar. A bar that I did not even realize could be raised. Who would have thought a toothbrush could be changed so drastically?
Great Job! 5 Stars.
Mobile Submission: False
I would recommend this to a friend!
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HP OMEN Obelisk by HP Desktop: Play graphically intense games with this HP OMEN Obelisk desktop computer. You can easily store large amounts of media and other data on the 1TB hard drive and install games and programs on the 256GB SSD for fast access. This HP OMEN Obelisk desktop computer has 16GB of memory for multitasking effectively, and the Intel Core i7-9700 processor handles resource-intense programs efficiently.
How many cores are there in this pc
8 Cores / 8 Threads. Intel has disabled hyper-threading on its i7 processors.
6 years ago
by
NAMO
HP OMEN Obelisk by HP Desktop: Play graphically intense games with this HP OMEN Obelisk desktop computer. You can easily store large amounts of media and other data on the 1TB hard drive and install games and programs on the 256GB SSD for fast access. This HP OMEN Obelisk desktop computer has 16GB of memory for multitasking effectively, and the Intel Core i7-9700 processor handles resource-intense programs efficiently.
The advertisement and stated processor says its a 9th gen i7-9700 however if you click on the pdf information for this computer it states that it is an 8th Gen i7-8700? Also indicates that graphics are onboard and not the GPU?
It is the 9th Generation 9700 processor with an nVidia GTX 1660Ti graphics card. I believe all the Intel processors include onboard graphics.
6 years ago
by
NAMO
This Pioneer BDR-XD05S external drive allows you to archive up to 128GB of data on BD-R QL media and up to 100GB of data on BD-R TL media, plus supports DVD and CD formats, so you can burn your favorite movies and music to discs.
can a windows 7 computer boot from this drive ?
You should have no issues as long as your bios supports this feature.
7 years, 10 months ago
by
NAMO
This Pioneer BDR-XD05S external drive allows you to archive up to 128GB of data on BD-R QL media and up to 100GB of data on BD-R TL media, plus supports DVD and CD formats, so you can burn your favorite movies and music to discs.
Is this compatible with a Surface Book?
Mine did not work correctly with a Surface Pro, even with a powered hub. It has worked perfectly with every other computer and/or laptop I've tried it with, though.
7 years, 10 months ago
by
NAMO
Relax and enjoy your favorite films, sporting events or shows on the expansive 65-inch screen of this LG 4K HD TV. Active HDR with Dolby Vision creates an immersive experience with clear images. This LG 4K HD TV features a thin OLED design, giving the television a slender silhouette that doesn't take up much space.
Difference between the 2016 vs 2017 models? Any one what the pros/cons?
From my research, it appears the big differences are that the 2017 models come with LG's latest OS installed (WebOS 3.5 vs WebOS 3.0). LG has also worked some magic on the video processing too. They are now able to get more detail in the very darkest portions of an image, where the 2016 models would sign off on the darkest details earlier & just represent them as total black. Lastly, they able to tweak the light output on the panels to improve overall brightness, which was a common complaint of the 2016 models that were installed in fairly bright rooms from what I have heard.
Thanks. Hope this helps.
Thanks. Hope this helps.
8 years, 1 month ago
by
NAMO
Relax and enjoy your favorite films, sporting events or shows on the expansive 65-inch screen of this LG 4K HD TV. Active HDR with Dolby Vision creates an immersive experience with clear images. This LG 4K HD TV features a thin OLED design, giving the television a slender silhouette that doesn't take up much space.
When is bestbuy going to sell the LG B7 65 inch model?
I don't think they will. It is my understanding that the B7 is identical to the C7, but intended for Costco and/or Sam's only.
8 years, 1 month ago
by
NAMO