I spent a chunk of the weekend looking for a reasonably priced desktop PC to replace the eMachine T6420 that died last week (probably a system board level problem). I was all set to buy a Dell Inspiron 530 desktop for a bit over $500 until I saw the shipping cost. For some reason, Dell.com insisted that the only shipping option available was overnight for $109. Paying 20+% of the system’s cost for shipping didn’t sit well with me. So, I emptied the cart and started looking again.
Then, I noticed a paper mailing from Costco about items on Costco.com and noticed that they had a bunch of desktops including the Dell 530 model I abandoned on Dell.com. It turns out that Costco’s one-size fits all configuration was much better than the $500 config I had earlier. For $599, Costco.com delivers 4GB RAM, 500GB HD, media card reader, USB speakers with a 2 year warranty that includes onsite service. My configuation over at Dell for $499 just had 2GB RAM, 250GB HD, no card reader, no speakers, and a 1 year warranty (no home service). And, Costco.com’s shipping cost? $19.99. So I’m getting much much better specs and warranty for $620 from Costco compared to the $610 I would have paid by buying directly from Dell.com. Both configurations include a Core 2 Quad 6600 processor, btw.
Sure, it will be weeks before I see the PC from Costco.com vs. a few days from Dell. But, that is ok.
My eMachines T6420 died about 10 days ago. Looks like a system board problem and, quite frankly, not worth the cost and effort of replacing an out-of-warranty motherboard. So, I’m in the market for a low-cost desktop PC to replace it. Consumer Reports (Sept. 2008 issue) has a bunch of computer picks in various categories. The three listed in the Budget category are the Gateway GT5670, Dell 530S, and eMachines T5254 (FYI, eMachines was bought by Gateway which in turn was bought by Acer). I have a real problem with them recommending any eMachines model. And, here’s why. I’ve bought five (5) eMachines desktop PCs since 2002. They were the clear price leader with what seemed like decent components in them (for the price). The problem is that I’ve had major component failures in four of the five in that time period. Moreover, these were the kind of failures that I have not seen in PCs from other manufacturers in the same time period.
For example, the photo above is a section of the motherboard of a eMachines T1840. It quite literally fried. Capacitors all over the motherboard erupted and look like the cluster pictured above. I tried to contact eMachines to say: Hey, I know my PC is out of warranty. I am not asking for repairs. But, you should be aware that you may have a safety issue should this model go up in flames. All I received back was a form email pointing me to their replacement parts ordering page. I have never seen any other motherboard in a PC purchased during this same period have this kind of problem. I’ve also had three (3) CD or DVD drives fail in various eMachines PCs. And, I think I’ve had memory DIMMs go back in three of five eMachines PCs too. I have not seen this kind of problem in the various Dell PCs I’ve bought and used over the same time period. On the other hand, all three of my Dell Latitude notebooks have required motherboard replacement during their three year warranty period.
So, my objection to the Consumer Reports pick of the eMachines T5424 has nothing to do with its specs or price. However, after a series of component failures (including the spectacular capacitor flameout in the T1840), I know I’m not going to purchase another eMachines PC.
If you’re a tech geek, you probably think about ways to use tech gadgets for everything including your kids’ pets. Here’s how I use an infrared thermometer to check if the outdoor temperature where my daughter’s pet rabbit spends the day is cool enough to be safe for him.
I never got around to buying the 1st, 2nd, or even 3rd generation Asus Eee PC mini-notebook. Now, I’ve got a new project starting up. And, I want a mini-notebook to haul around with me so I can truly work anywhere without lugging a lot of stuff. My Macbook is great. But it is 5 pounds and really wide with is 13.3″ widescreen (I hate those widescreens that sacrifice pixel height, btw). So, I the last day considering the Asus Eee PC 900 and 1000 series devices (both Linux and Windows XP based models). I briefly considered the HP 2133 Mini-note since Costco.com sells the Suse Linux version for $499.99. Costco.com surprisingly also carries two Asus Eee PC models. But, the HP’s poor battery life, sluggish performance (compared to the Eee PCs), reported WiFi issues with the Linux version scared me off of it (again). So, I’m now considering the Acer Aspire One which clocks in at $379.99 at Amazon (I’m checking around for better prices/deals).
I’m trying to download the ISO for the Linpus Linux Lite that runs on the Acer Aspire One to get a feel for it. But, the estimated download time is showing as another 15 hours. So, I may not waste the electricity to download the 674MB ISO file.
You don’t really hear people referring to the mid-1990s as the good old days. But, if they did, this little bill from June 1995 might shock them out of that thought. I found it while cleaning up my home office. Yep, that is a $709 price tag for a 16MB (that’s MEGA-BYTES, not gigs) RAM board for my PC.
I happen to think that having a mix of standard battery operated flashlights and crank-charge flashlights is a good idea. So, I have a small collection of crank-charge flashlights scattered around the home “just in case”. I bought a 2-pack of this Duracell Crank Light 3 in 1, 3 LED Flashlight, Radio, Charger from Costco for around $25 (if I recall correctly). The phone includes a flashlight, flasher, AM/FM radio. The feature that intrigued me the most, however, was its purported ability to charge other devices from its USB port (see photo below).
When the switch is set to USB out, it is supposed to crank out (literally) 5 to 6 VDC at 450 mA (not much but potentially useful to provide a minute or two of voice in an emergency). In practice, however, I was unable to find any of my phones that showed as being in charge mode when connected to the flashlight and cranking the handle for a couple a minute or two.
While the flashlight has a pretty big rechargeable battery, it does not seem to retain a charge as long as other crank flashlights I’ve tried. And, unlike other lights, it does not immediately produce light when being cranked when the battery is completely drained. Its odd shape and weight distribution also makes it more difficult to crank than other crank charged lights I have. Finally, note that it has a Type A USB port on its side. This seems ok until you look at your collection of USB cables. How many Type A to Type A USB cables do you have? I have zero in my collection. I have a bunch of Type A to Type B and Type A to mini-USB or micro-USB. I have have a Type A to Type A-extender cable. But, I have zero Type A to Type A USB cables to charge the flashlight from my PC. And, yep, the flashlight does NOT include a cable in its package.
So, good idea, poor implementation. Even worse, the Duracell web site has NO information at all about this or any other multi-function flashlight products.
…mini-speaker from iFrogz during their after-Christmas sale and received it, hmm, late January or early February. It’s list price is US$24.95, but I bought it for $14.95 during the sale period. This mono single speaker is not going to challenge your whiz bang high speaker system for sound quality. But, it gave me exactly what I wanted: A super-small speaker that I could use with my iPod or Zune to plop down and listen to podcasts while I puttered around the house (I hate wearing headphones and ear-buds).
The USB connector is used to charge the speaker. I use it a couple of times a week and recharge it every 4 to 8 weeks. The mini-plug plugs right into any MP3 player like an iPod or Zune. There’s a three position power-volume switch (off, speaker on, speaker on a bit louder) and a green power light. The accordian looking middle can actually collapse to make it even smaller for transport. The speaker cable has an easy to use auto-extender/retractor that has worked well so far. I’m definitely glad I purchased this little speaker and have gotten a good half-year of use from it so far.
I have a couple of active (powered fans) notebook cooling pads. But, they all require wall power. So, I bought the Belkin Laptop Cooling Pad when I saw it for $19.95 at the local Costco ($23.48 at Amazon). It does a good job of cooling my usually hot Apple MacBook. However, there I have a couple of issues with this product.
Unlike my other pads, this one is curved. I’m holding it upside down here. You can see its feet pointing up. The notebook sits on the concave area with air being blown up to the notebook and then out sidewards through the tunnel formed by the notebook sitting on the pad.
The photo above is the bottom of the pad. The top compartment is actually the pad’s stand. It is pretty flimsy and I’m pretty sure it will not last more than a year or two. This also means that it is not really designed to be used on the lap since the fan is at the bottom of the curved surface. Without the stand, I’m not sure how much air it can draw when sitting on a lap (vs. a desktop). The compartment on the bottom is where the USB power cable can be stored. However, it is so flimsy that I am relunctant to open and close it often. So, I usually carry the cable separate and hope I don’t lose it.
One of my big concerns about this product is the USB power cable. As you can see in the photo above, it has a standard Type A connector for the notebook. But, the pad’s connector is a tip-ring type power plug instead of a USB Type B or mini-USB connector. This means that the power cable is unique and you are SOL if you lose it. You can see that my daughter’s pet rabbit has some reservations about the cable connector design choice too
Despite my complains here, the Belkin Laptop Cooling Pad does do a good job of keeping my MacBook running cool in the summer heat and think my $20 was reasonably well spent.
