In 2013, I received a SmartThings hub (1st Generation) as a gift for Christmas. Several months later I made the decision to begin the transition from my [...]
August 16, 2020
Hubitat Elevation
Wolverine 8mm Film Scanner
I am part of the generation that spanned the digital revolution which means I have dozens of reels full of my parents’ Super 8mm film going back to [...]
March 14, 2020
Remarkable Paper Tablet
I have been intrigued with this gadget for over a year now when I first learned of it. It certainly seemed too good to be true, and for that reason alone I [...]
November 12, 2019
Linksys MR8300 Mesh Router
I wasn’t completely happy with the Netgear X4S router – it was missing a few essential features – but then I really wasn’t happy [...]
March 27, 2019
Netgear Nighthawk X4S
The time had come to upgrade my old router (D-Link DIR-825). It had been a good performer, with excellent stability, but it didn’t have quite the [...]
February 24, 2019
Ring Video Doorbell
I received the Ring video doorbell as a Christmas gift this year. Overall, I like it. However, I have a few reservations about recommending it to others. [...]
January 8, 2017
FlashForge Creator Pro 3D Printer
Santa was kind to me this year and brought me a new 3D printer, so I’ve been learning how to use it. If you spend any time researching these you [...]
December 23, 2016
Acu-Rite Weather Station
For my birthday, I had this weather station on my wishlist. It’s one of those items I would probably never buy for myself, because it’s [...]
July 12, 2016
Synology DiskStation DS412+
I think I’ve solved my storage problems once and for all. It’s taken me a while to pull the trigger on this purchase, but my previous NAS and [...]
March 29, 2014
CCD Barcode Scanner
Are you tired of spending hours manually entering book titles into your own personal database? (Well, okay, if you’re not a home-schooler, maybe [...]
September 9, 2012
Eee PC Reboot
I’ve had an Asus Eee PC netbook for a few years. I was initially impressed with its speed and the Xandros linux load that came pre-installed. After [...]
August 17, 2011
IOGEAR Wireless Keyboard
Last year, I wrote about the Lenovo Keyboard I bought, and that I wasn’t a fan. It has its good points, but overall the lack of backlighting is a [...]
July 16, 2011
Netopia 3347 DSL Modem/Router
At the suggestion of an AT&T technician, I upgraded my old router and DSL modem to this Netopia 3347 combination unit, and I am very glad I did. He [...]
August 6, 2010
Quest For A Good Antenna
An integral part of my Home Theater PC build is the antenna, and when I first wrote about the hardware, I wasn’t even aware how complicated things [...]
July 5, 2010
Lenovo Wireless Keyboard
The Lenovo N5901 wireless keyboard is a small handheld remote with a full QWERTY keyboard and built-in trackball. It seems well suited for home theater [...]
June 28, 2010
Memory Foam Mattress
It’s been about six months since we bought this memory foam mattress at Sam’s. At the time, I read every single comment on the page, left by [...]
June 4, 2010
HTPC Install
[This is Part IV of a series on building your own HTPC] Once you’ve assembled the hardware, and collected the software, it is time to begin your [...]
March 9, 2010
HTPC Software
[This is Part III of a series on building your own HTPC] I started out thinking this would be a Linux-based PC, but two things changed my mind. First, [...]
March 7, 2010
HTPC Hardware
[This is Part II of a series on building your own HTPC] Let me start by saying that I did not compile this entire list of hardware through trial and error. [...]
March 2, 2010
Roku
I’ve been a Netflix user for many years. I was intrigued when they began offering some of their movies in streaming format directly from their web [...]
January 6, 2010
DJ Hero
Santa brought me DJ Hero for the Wii this year for Christmas, and I have to say it’s the surprise hit of all of my new toys. I wasn’t quite [...]
December 26, 2009
Tunes To Go
I’m lucky to work at a place that doesn’t mind its employees listening to music (on headphones) while they work. Years ago, I carried an actual [...]
August 28, 2009
iPod Touch
It was time to retire my Palm PDA, but replacing it was something of a challenge since no one really makes PDAs anymore that aren’t part of a [...]
July 28, 2009
Envirocycle Compost Bin
Since we’ve been talking about planting a garden for quite a while now, my Earth Day gift to myself this year was a new compost bin from Envirocycle. [...]
June 14, 2009