Recently, i picked up the ROKU HD at Walmart for $58.00. I took it home, and made up a unboxing video for it. It is now about a week after, and my opinions on this device are mixed.  The ROKU HD is a super small device, that fits right in my hands. It allows for full 720p video output, and connects to my network via WiFi. Sorry, if you want a device that connects via a Ethernet cable, you will have to upgrade.

While this device is awesome for what it does,Your decision to buy it depends on how you plan to use it. When you get your ROKU box, you get access to many channels, but some of them are subscription channels that cost money every month to use. The channels that cost money have up-to-date content (like Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix), while the free channels have lots of old content, and don’t update all that often. The idea that the ROKU box is actually good, they just didn’t do it the way i wanted. Sure, it is cool that i can access my Facebook pictures and videos, but when it comes to movies, like i said, if you wan’t good ones, you will have to subscribe to a subscription service like Hulu.

Another quite annoying feature is that a lot of the channels don’t have a dedicated option to search for certain titles..You have to search within a genre for the movie you are looking for.  I’m sure Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix have search options,  but im not a subscriber to any of them. (Since amazon allows me to buy individual titles, i can confirm that they have a search option). Scrolling through lists of movies is no fun.

Also, it is kind of strange that they didn’t add a application to access YouTube videos on this… which seems odd.

While i do enjoy this box, i don’t plan on subscribing to any channels, which is one of the reasons i may sell this device in the future. If you are like me, and only want to pay the original price, i wouldn’t recommend getting this, unless you enjoy old movies. I will browse the collection of free movies for a little longer, and then i will most likely get bored with it.

So, overall, this device isn’t a bad idea, but i’m not fully satisfied. Again, the idea of being able to stream movies is nice, but i am someone who doesn’t want a subscription service where i have to pay every month.

Today, i thought i would finally sit down and review my PS Vita. I originally got this device about a week ago, and i feel i have had enough time to review it.

The Last Playstation Portable console disappointed me. There was only one analog stick, and the pullout controls were a nightmare. With the new PS Vita, i am very impressed and i am loving every moment of it. The controls feel much better, and everything just feels right in my hands. The device did seem big when i first opened the package, but it didn’t take me long to get used to it. Games seem to run amazing on this device – the new controls feel wonderful, and i sometimes need to remind myself that i am playing a portable console, and not the Playstaton 3. This was the first Portable console to have two analog sticks, which is the best part, and makes FPS games work better than ever.

One issue i had was not with the device itself, but the pricing. Ever since this got released, the price hasn’t gone down much. I will admit, i bought this used. For as long as this device has been on the market, it deserves a price drop.

Lets talk games. There is wide selection of games on the Playstation Store, and you can even buy these card things, which i still haven’t bothered with. Like i said earlier, games run very well on this device based on controls, however i still can’t find a game where i feel i would need to use the touch pad on the back. This is one feature i am trying to avoid. Another thing i haven’t messed around with is the AR cards. These are basically cards you set on a table and you can play certain games with the camera. Simply put, its Augmented Reality, and in my mind, portable gaming devices are not ready for such features.

OK, enough about games. Let’s get into the User Interface. Everything on the UI has been revamped – When you first start up this device you will notice a very sleek, touch based user interface that works very well, and functions very quick. Another thing you will notice is that they have redone the web browser, and it is better than ever.  Let’s face it – the web browser on the previous Playstation portable was awful in so many ways. The UI also allows for some nice customization features. Each one of your screens can have different ‘colors’ and you can move apps between screens.

The camera’s on the device are nothing fancy, so don’t expect to be able to take awesome videos and pictures. This is mainly used for games, and the quality isn’t worth it for pictures and videos.

Simply put, i couldn’t find many flaws with this device. Sure, it will take some time to get used to how big the device is, but when you throw in all the amazing features the PS Vita has, you get a wonderful expierience that feels like a Portable Playstation 3 with touchscreen. The Vita is availible in both 3G and Wifi models.

For the past few days, i have been playing with the Playstation Portable Go (PSPGO), and i’m quite disappointed with it.  Yes, i know this is a old device, but that is not the reason i am disappointed. We will explore why i hate this, but first, lets take a look at the specifications.

The PSPGo has a screen resolution running at 480 x 272, which does look quite nice. It is available in both black and white models. The CPU speed is 333 MHz, and has 64MB or RAM, which makes everything run smoothly. It was also the first portable gaming system by Sony to use Bluetooth, although i still don’t understand what we would use it for. The device is smaller than the prevous PSP’s, and can be scary, because the button design is different.

Some games seem to run fine on this, but i have to say this now – If your a fan of the Grand Theft Auto series, those games run terribly slow. It uses the same user interface as the other PSP’s, and the internet browser feels outdated. The only thing that has changed is the design, and even then, there comes to a point where a device can be too small.

The new button layout can be very scary for users who are upgrading - It is very different and i’m afraid this is why this is now for sale on my Amazon page. The buttons are too close, and i feel like the device is actually too small for me, and the idea of a pullout keyboard on a portable gaming system just does not work.

Overall, the device is OK if you never had a Playstation Portable. However, if you are upgrading, i would not recommend getting this. Spend the extra money and get the Playstation Vita, which i will be reviewing in about a week or so.

A Few days ago, i decided to upgrade my printer. I went to my local walmart and searched for a printer that has wireless functions, such as Wi-Fi and wireless printing from your phone and tablet. I Found the Epson XP300 Small-In-One Printer, on sale for $50.

The Epson XP300 printer is a printer that has all the functions you would want from a standard All-In-One printer – such as Wireless Printing (i suggest using Google Cloud Print), Copying/Scanning, and Photo Printing. It’s all packed in a wonderful glossy look, and looks awesome on my desk. The only problem with this is that fingerprints and smudges will show up very easily. I find myself cleaning this printer with a microfiber cloth every so often to remove the fingerprints. This doesn’t really bother me that much, but if you don’t fancy the idea of glossy products that attract fingerprint’s, you might not wan’t this printer.

The control panel on the front makes it easy to access all the printers main features - Scanning your favorite photos only takes a few steps, and i didn’t find entering text for my Wi-Fi password too painful. (I never enjoyed typing my long Wi-Fi password on printers, since there is no keyboard). There is 6 buttons on the control panel – Power, Back, Start, OK, and the arrow keys. Navigating on the menu’s is super easy, and everything is very responsive.

The wireless feature is definitely my favorite part of this printer. It is super fun to play around with, and it has no problem finding my Wireless Access Point. This printer does have the ability to Scan and Print from anywhere, with software such as Google Cloud Print. It was exciting for me to go over to Wendy’s the other day, send a document to my printer, and then come home to see it printed! This feature should come in handy when i actually need to print something while i am away from home. This feature has worked on my phone, and it should also work on my tablet and laptop no problem, since all i have to do is have the ability to access Google Cloud Print. If Google Cloud Print doesn’t suit you, i believe there is other alternatives.

One of the gifts i received on Christmas was the iHome iC50 for my android phone (Which is the Droid X, by the way). I’ve been playing around with it for awhile now, and it’s time to review this sexy device.

The iHome iC50 is a docking station/alarm clock for your android phone,that has some nifty features such as wake to music, and even a Alarm Clock. The speaker quality is very good for this small device – It’  using Reson8 chamber speakers, with EXB bass sound. (According to the box, that’s good stuff). The design is nice, they packed most of the buttons very well on the top, however i didn’t like how the DST and Time SET buttons were on the back. It’s not that much of a problem, but it is one of those small things that i didn’t like about this device. Overall, i am very pleased with this device. The design is very sleek and sexy, and it is a one-of-a-kind device. I look forward to looking at other iHome devices in the future. Hmm, i wonder if my kindle fire would work with this…

A few months back, i got the Droid X. This may not be the newest droid phone, but it works for me. I have always been someone who doesn’t need to have the latest and greatest. Sure, i would like it, but i don’t need it for a good reason. When i first got this phone out from its box, i noticed that the back of it is a little different. The camera is out farther from the back, which is not a bad problem, but it was a little different for me since this was my first droid phone. I heard about this phone being too big for some people to use, but i didn’t have that problem with this device. I guess i have big hands, who knows. The phone has four main buttons – menu, home, back, and search. You can see them on the photo below.

The Droid X is running Android, Gingerbread 2.3. The screen resolution is 854×480, at 228 ppi, and the screen is 4.3 inches big. So, it looks pretty good. On the right side of the phone, you have your custom button which you can set. I have it set to camera. On the left side, there is the volume rocker. On the top, is your power button and mp3 port for listening to music. The Droid X also features a 8.0 MP rear camera, that is capable of recording 720p video.

So far, this phone is not very disappointing. It is very responsive, and has a very crisp display. The Droid X uses multiple screens feature, it allows for 7 different screens. I only use two of them. You can add app shortcuts and widgets to the screen. Be aware – this phone uses Google Play. I myself don’t mind the Google Play store, but some people cant stand it. The app menu is also very cool. It offers a grouping feature so you can group your favorite apps into separate ‘folders’.

We all know you wan’t to know how the browsing works. Very well, actually. I have no complaints about the browser, but it does stink that Google Chrome is not compatible with this phone. The 3G connectivity unleashes the power of the browser for fast website loading screens. Also, this phone does support some of the hand gestures while browsing, like zooming.

The real big issue i have with this phone is that the battery seems to die very quickly. I have to charge it every night. However, this is not something that is making me get a completely different phone.

Benchmarking Results, using CF-Bench: 2177 (Overall Score)

This past Black Friday, i went looking for a new camera. After i waited in line for about two hours, i got the Samsung ST201 camera. This camera’s original list price is $160. I got it on sale for $100. (If you look around you should some great offers). I received the black model, i am unsure if they make any other colors.

The Samsung ST201 is a good camera – It’s not one of those expensive cameras that can do anything, but it works amazingly and takes good, crisp photos. It has a small design, with a 3.0 intelligent LCD screen, displayed at hVGA resolution. The camera can take very nice photos at 16.1 megapixels. The photos come out great – in fact, the photo taken above was taken with this camera. The camera has 10x optical zoom, which is okay for what average photographers. Again, nothing fancy here.

This camera is capable of taking videos in 720p resolution. This is my favorite feature, since i’m always taking videos of my dogs. I have played a few videos on my computer, they don’t seem too bad. You can see a video i recorded here.

Like i said, this is nothing too fancy. This camera doesn’t cost over $200, therefore i consider it to be an average camera, with the little features that make it nicer, such as 720p recording and motion photos.