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The Crutchfield Staff Review blog is all about having our employees share their real-world experiences with the items we sell, so customers can make informed decisions. But your experience with the gear is valuable, too.
Posting a product review at Crutchfield.com can help others find out important information about products. And — admit it — you’ve probably been influenced a time or two by the reviews and ratings yourself.
Customer reviews provide feedback for our merchandising team and our manufacturers. If you’re happy with a product we want to know what you like best about it. If you’re not happy then we want to know what displeased you.
Did you find a feature that you didn’t know about, or was there something that you thought the gear would do that it wouldn't? Having more info about the items we carry helps us make better choices about our product selection. And it provides a better shopping experience for all of our customers.
Take, for example, the Denon ASD-1R iPod control dock. Some people loved it, some hated it. Where it was a good or bad experience seemed to be based on what Denon receiver was used, and what the customer's expectation of remote control functionality was.
If you’ve purchased any electronics gear in the last six months or so, we’d love to have you post a review. Just go to the product page of any item you bought, and click on the review tab. Take a few minutes to write up a review, rate the item on a scale of one to five stars, and you’re done.
You’ll add to our collective body of knowledge about that product. And all of us here at Crutchfield — and your fellow customers — will be grateful you did.
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I love trying out the gear we carry here at Crutchfield. What a perk to get to take home a top-notch speaker system and set it up alongside my beat-up couch and the hand-me-down end tables I've had since college.
I grew up with four brothers, and I have a chivalrous husband, so it had been quite some time since I'd had my hands on speaker wire. I decided to put the Bose® Acoustimass® 16 home theater system to the test. Would it really be as easy to set up as they say?
I lugged the huge box home, and opened it up to find a colorful step-by-step picture guide right on top — very nice. Here's how the next hour unfolded:
5:45 Started unwrapping speakers, cables, and the Acoustimass bass module.
5:52 Changed into shorts (it's still pretty hot here in Virginia).
5:56 Finished fishing everything out of the box.
6:00 Plugged in the bass module.
6:13 Placed and hooked up the front left, right, and center speakers to the bass module. (This was no problem — everything's color-coded and clearly labeled).
6:20 Broke a nail, cursed, gave myself a "time out."
6:25 Moved some furniture.
6:27 Placed and connected the rear left, right, and center channel speakers.
6:40 Connected the bass module to my receiver.
6:42 Collapsed on the floor and listened to some tunes.
Now, we don't have a home theater receiver. If we did, I would've plugged the Acoustimass 16's surround sound speakers into the appropriate places on such a receiver, and all six channels would've handled their individual audio realms (that is, I might hear different sounds out of different speakers at different times). But I have an old Onkyo stereo receiver, so I just faked it and connected the front and rear right and left speakers into what I had — the A and B speaker inputs.
Then I sat in the middle of the room and listened to a song. It reminded me of a time I sat in the center of my daughter's harp ensemble, with six or so harps in a circle around me. The sound of that music washing over me from all directions was incredible. I could only imagine the impact this system, along with the right receiver (and a gorgeous HDTV), would have on our movie nights.
But mostly, I was pleased to have proven the theory — it was a breeze to set up the Bose Acoustimass 16.
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Boy, do I get tired of getting tangled up in the wire that connects my MP3 player to my headphones. I have a cordless phone, cordless drill, cordless vacuum, wireless camcorder, and wireless Internet. So stepping up to wireless music seemed like something I should've done a long time ago.
When I took the new Sony NWZ-A829 out of the box, I realized that this MP3 player's best feature is what it lacks — a mandatory cord (though Sony does include a pair of wired earbuds, just in case you prefer being tethered to your MP3). The 'A829 is Bluetooth® compatible, which means that it makes a wireless connection to other Bluetooth-ready devices like headphones, MP3 speakers, cell phones, and car stereos.
After loading it up with tunes, I tried out the 'A829 with some Bluetooth accessories. Within seconds of turning each thing on, the player recognized both Sony's DR-BT21G wireless headphones and the compact Sony SRS-BTM30 MP3 speaker. Next, I selected the device (headphones first) that I wanted to use from the list the player had created. I chose my favorite song from the menu, and there it was in my ears, clear as a bell. Furthermore, I was free as a bee. I could lay the player down and dance without pulling a cord out of a plug or twisting a wire out of shape.
Imagine being at the gym with this setup. It's always annoyed me to have my headphones' cord whipping back and forth as I walk on a treadmill, not to mention the many times I've accidentally ripped it out of my MP3 player with an extra-wide arm swing.
 This MP3 player also worked well with Sony's Bluetooth speaker. I decided that at my next party, I might put batteries in the speaker to make it totally wireless. I could put it out on the back deck, where we always end up. Then my friends and I — who bicker over what kind of music to play at parties — could pass the MP3 player around and take turns picking out songs (poor friends, though: it's my playlist in that player). The nice thing? No one would have to return to the speaker to change tunes or volume like we would with a docked player.
The Sony NWZ-A829 impressively struts its stuff when it makes that wireless connection to Bluetooth gear like Sony DR-BT21G wireless headphones and the Sony SRS-BTM30 speaker. Next thing I need? A cordless computer mouse — mine’s been wrapped around my ankle the whole time I typed this.
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Big news for fans of
the Sonos® Multi-Room Music Systems — the new lineup of products makes a
good thing even better. While we’re happy to see how the products have been
improved, we’re thrilled Sonos kept the things that, in our opinion, made the
system great in the first place.
The improvements we’re glad to
see:
1. An
expanded wireless network. The new ZonePlayers operate with a larger wireless
network — in some cases it can provide almost double the coverage area. With
these improved ZonePlayers, it’s easier to extend your system from one end of
your house to the other.
2. A
smaller and more powerful ZonePlayer. The new ZonePlayer 120's footprint is roughly 43% smaller than the ZonePlayer 100, so it's easier to slip onto a bookshelf or store
on a desk. And while Sonos slimmed down the size of the player, they increasing the power
it delivers to your speakers. This player's built-in amp pumps out 55 watts per channel.
The features we're glad they
kept:
1. The
same great Sonos Controller. This wireless remote is one of the easiest in the
industry to use. It has a big, clear LCD screen and a simple scrollwheel for
selecting tunes, creating playlists, and adjusting playback to different rooms.
2. Internet radio and subscription digital music services. In addition to
playing your PC's music anywhere in your house, you can access Internet radio
stations and subscription services, like Rhapsody®, Napster®, SIRIUS satellite radio, and Pandora®,
so you'll always have a supply of fresh music to listen
to.
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 I like radio. A lot. But over the years I've increasingly disliked the limited choices available on the AM/FM dial here in rural Virginia. So I was extremely happy to check out the new Grace Wireless Internet Radio.
Crutchfield carries a variety of these wireless PC music players, but the Grace radio really appealed to me. It looks like a regular radio with its big tuning dial and preset buttons. And its single full-range speaker makes the Grace sound like a regular radio, too — but instead of receiving over-the-air broadcasts, the Grace taps into your home Wi-Fi network to access the audio content available online.
What I really liked about this unit is that I didn't need my computer. The radio found my router, and away we went. Using the radio's dial controls, I scrolled through countries, genres, and even call letters to find the Internet radio stations I wanted to listen to.
Many of these stations stream at a fairly low bitrate (usually between 64 kbps and 96 kbps), so the single full-range speaker was more than adequate. It delivered a nice, warm mono sound that reminded me of my old, long-gone Emerson transistor radio.
In addition to Internet-only stations, such as the Technicolor Web of Sound (one of my favorites), the Grace also played audio streams from terrestrial stations. So I could listen to the BBC, or KCRW, or even WTJU. The latter was a real plus, because even through the station's less than 40 miles away, due to terrain obstacles I can't pick up their over-the-air broadcast at my house.
The icing on the cake for me, though, was that the Grace Internet radio works with Pandora. Before, I could only listen to my custom Pandora stations at my computer, where I could approve or ban the songs that came up from my playlists. I could do all that through the Grace radio, which freed up the computer for my wife (and meant I could do other things while I listened).
So now I'm digging radio again. And while the sound of the Grace Wireless Internet Radio may harken back to my old transistor, the music selection is much, much, much, much better.
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I was over at Steve’s place the other day and sweet smokin’ sassafras, his system was sounding better than ever! As you may or may not know, Steve is Crutchfield’s long-time TV guru/writer. More importantly, he's also an audiophile and a music lover (as you can probably tell from Steve's review of the THIEL CS3.7 loudspeakers).
I can’t tell you how many folks have had their first introduction to high-res audio during one of many late-night listening sessions in Steve’s man cave, but I always get a kick out of watching that little grin appear as they discover never-before-heard details on recordings they’ve probably listened to a hundred times.
Those details really breathe life and atmosphere into music, like the tinkle of highball glasses at the bar behind the stage, the squeak of the chair as the guitarist leans in to sing the next verse, or the sound of a toe tapping time on the microphone stand. All these things bring a sense of immediacy, realism and excitement to music listening, and yet are sadly missed by so many systems.
Well, it was my turn to smile because Steve is presently auditioning a pair of THIEL SCS4 loudspeakers – the latest entry-level bookshelf models from this world-renowned, high-performance speaker company.
I recently heard the SCS4s along with THIEL’s SS1 powered SmartSub and PX05 passive subwoofer crossover in our audio-challenged, three-car install bay turned demo cavern here at Crutchfield headquarters. And even under these less-than-ideal listening conditions I was greatly impressed with the sound, but not totally blown away.
Now I like to think I have a pretty good ear, but boy did I ever totally underestimate these little powerhouses. Set up in Steve’s smaller (and more appropriately sized) 14’ x 24’ x 8' listening room and connected to his sweet-sounding Denon/PS Audio/Panamax/Audioquest music rig, the SC4's really came alive.
After listening to only one music track, it was clear that the THIELs were out-performing Steve’s much-beloved Audio Concepts Sapphire III speakers in a number of areas. Further listening revealed levels of detail that had us both agreeing that this was the best presentation of many old familiar tunes we had ever heard on his system. No small thing given the quality of the Sapphires. It’s pretty obvious that Jim Thiel lavished a great deal of attention on the voicing of the SCS4s.
I found my foot tapping along in time with the music as tune after tune unspooled from Steve’s system, revealing new levels of detail on every cut. Good recordings sounded even better, not so good ones showed their flaws. But the sound never became bright or harsh (something you sometimes expect with certain digital source material and solid-state electronics). The SCS4s also delivered a big soundstage with lots of depth — always stepping neatly out of the way to allow the performance to shine through while adding virtually no sound of their own.
A few small tweaks with placement and toe-in showed me that Steve had correctly nailed the THIEL’s location in the room right on the head. It also impressed me how balanced and coherent sounding they remained in spite of changes in placement. It almost seemed that you couldn’t position them incorrectly. Could this perhaps be a fortunate result of their somewhat unusual coaxial design? I could see this being a big plus if you decide to use these babies in a multichannel home theater setup where placement options are limited.
Based on my two relatively short sessions with the THIELs, I can’t help but think they’re destined to become true high-performance classics. Of course basing opinions on first impressions can sometimes be tricky. Experienced audio geeks know that only time will tell if a component will ultimately live up to that first impression. Steve’s had a chance to live with them for a while, though, so I’m looking forward to his more extensive review of the THIEL SCS4s, and see if he’s as impressed with them as I was.
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I just flashed back to my
first record player. It played 45s, and when it skipped, I put a penny on the
arm. Remember doing that? A handle on the side let me carry it around the house
to play songs for my brothers — moving music the old-fashioned way.
These days, I have a lot of MP3 songs stored on my computer. The Internet also holds a wealth of music for me to tap into, from radio stations across the country to online music
libraries that will learn my preferences and feed me songs I'm sure to love.
The only problem is bridging the gap between my PC (where the music's stored) to the stereo system in my living room (where I want to listen). For most of us, PC speakers aren't so great. For me, they're just plain broken.
If you're in a similar boat, problem solved. The Logitech® Squeezebox Duet is a nifty little receiver/controller combo. It makes a Wi-Fi® connection with your PC and sends music from there to whatever sound system you like. You hook the receiver to
your speakers of choice, download Logitech's free software, and soon your network (and library full of songs) pops right up on the controller's LCD screen.
We tested the Duet here at
work — twice, actually. The first time I wrote a review of it (you can see my
full review here). Both times, the Duet was simple to set up, and it
didn't take long — twenty minutes, tops. But naturally, when you're anxious to
play with a new electronic gadget, twenty minutes of setup time can seem
like two hours. And there were a few times the Duet made us wait a bit, such as when
it searched for our network or when it added firmware updates.
The controller had a
familiar scroll wheel and intuitive buttons. Basically, we just moved through
the menus the way we do with our MP3 players. It was a breeze to choose tunes,
and we easily flipped back and forth between Internet radio and our stored
songs. We could designate songs or stations as "favorites." And album
art automatically appeared on the LCD screen, along with background info on the
music.
If you're like me, and you
don't have your '70s portable record player anymore, the Squeezebox Duet
is a pretty cool solution. It was impressive to watch this small,
versatile system effortlessly move music from my PC to wherever I wanted it to be.
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 I've been fascinated by jets since I can remember, and in recent years I've started photographing them at airshows. This spring I purchased a Nikon D60 and entered the realm of SLR photography. The camera kit came with two lenses, an AF 18-55mm Nikkor VR (Vibration Reduction) lens, and an AF 55-200mm Nikkor VR zoom lens. The AF 55-200mm was great for telephoto shots of airborne aerobatics, while the AF 18-55mm's wider angle lens worked better for static ground displays.
But that meant I had to tote both lenses around, and frequently change them out. I needed a better option.
So, I decided to give the Tamron AF 28-300mm VC (Vibration Compensation) a try.
The lens handled the bulk of my shots, both of subjects in the air and on the ground. Normally, telephoto zoom poses a challenge to a photographer without a tripod, but the lens' Vibration Compensation feature compensated enough for me to get some great photos.
Taken with the full 300mm zoom. Vibration Compensation kept the shot crisp and clean.
The Tamron lens is slightly heavier and wider than my Nikkor 55-200mm kit lens, but not longer when completely collapsed. Extended, it was about an inch and a half longer than my Nikkor lens. This didn't bother me at all, as I knew I was getting an extra 100mm of telephoto reach.
I shot with a wider focus (50mm) to get the entire formation in the shot as they flew overhead.
A locking mechanism on the side kept the lens in collapsed form. This secured it and prevented lens creep, that annoying telescoping motion of the lens as you walk around. The grooved rubber grip let me get a tight control on the zoom, and the autofocus was very quick.
One noticeable drawback was that the focusing ring rotated when in autofocus mode. This movement was right where my hand naturally held the lens and camera when steadying for a shot. This took a few minutes to get used to, as I had to keep repositioning my index finger to keep the camera still while it focused. The Tamron is a faster lens than my Nikkor telephoto starting at an f3.5, and once I got comfortable with my grip, taking shots was a breeze.
The Tamron’s 28mm is 10mm short of my kit lens, this just meant I had to step back a few feet to shoot the static displays on the ground at the show. The versatility of the Tamron AF 28-300mm VC lens let me leave the other lenses at home, and to easily get around the show and take photos. Also, I saved time by not having to change out lenses and possibly missing a great photo opportunity in the process.
By using the zoom (100mm), I could get this detailed shot while still behind the safety fence.
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Tamron's 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto zoom lens has been a long time coming — rumors of its arrival started popping up a couple of years ago. Now it's finally here, and I snagged one for a weekend to put it through its paces.
The lens comes with a petal-shaped hood, a removable tripod mount, and a padded case. One small detail is worth noting: the Tamron lens cap is the "pinch style" cap where you grab its tabs in the middle of the cap, rather than on the outside. This means you can leave the hood on all day and still get the cap on and off easily. The normal style of lens cap makes that impossible because there is no clearance between your fingers and the sides of the lens hood. Smooth move, Tamron!.
The lens is a big one, much bigger (and better built) than entry-level zooms. Focusing is done internally, so the lens does not extend while zooming or focusing. The large front element does not rotate — good if you're using filters.
The Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 zoom lens with its included hood.
The main thing (other than the size and build) that distinguishes the Tamron from its entry-level brethren is its large maximum aperture. Most "beginner" zoom lenses in the 70-200mm ballpark can open up only to f/4-5.6 or so, meaning they let in less light than the Tamron's constant f/2.8.
Where this can hurt you is at 200mm when you're shooting without a tripod or a monopod — less light hitting the sensor means the shutter has to stay open longer, and at 200mm camera shake is visible through the viewfinder. So in order to get a sharp picture, you'd have to pump up the ISO setting to achieve a faster shutter speed and minimize blur. But doing so comes at the expense of picture quality, since the appearance of grain increases with your ISO setting.
Since the lens has a wide max aperture of f/2.8 across the entire
zoom range, it is possible to use it indoors using available light.
The Tamron opens up to f/2.8 across the zoom range, so you can get some great hand-held shots that are impossible with slower zooms, including lower-light or indoor shots. I found myself shooting without my monopod more and more as the weekend progressed. It's a workout to shoot with this lens hand-held for an entire afternoon, but the results are worth it.
Focusing on my Canon 40D was accurate and reasonably fast. I was able to get some good action shots at a youth baseball game where nobody's ever standing still.
Safe at third! The throw went into left field, but this handheld sports shot is nice & crisp.
It's worth noting a couple of mechanical differences between Tamron zoom lenses and Canon zoom lenses. I find that there is no perfect piece of camera gear, that any piece of equipment requires some user adjustment. So that's why these differences seem pretty minor. But here they are:
- First, Tamron uses a "clutch mechanism" to change from auto to manual focus. You just grab the focus ring and pull it toward you. You can feel it slide into place, much like changing gears in a car, and you're free to focus manually. Manual focus on the 70-200mm is touchy — a quarter turn covers the whole range, so when you're honing in on a flower or something, very slight twists are required to achieve perfect focus. It's no big deal to me, because I use autofocus 99% of the time, anyway.
- Second, the zoom ring twists in the opposite direction as Canon zooms. I got used to this in 20 seconds.
The lens is sharp, too. Stopping down (or closing) the aperture makes it even sharper — by f/4 it's extremely sharp. But the reason I like an f/2.8 zoom is because I can shoot it wide open without a tripod in fading light, and it's plenty sharp enough at f/2.8. Sharpness has more to do with your technique than your lens, anyway.
The lens' large maximum aperture is great at the end of the day when light begins to fade. Out
in bright sunlight you wouldn't shoot at f/2.8.
Another nice thing about f/2.8 on a zoom lens is that you can achieve a shallower depth of field, blurring out distracting background elements and making your subject stand out. The Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 is well-constructed, and renders the bokeh (blurry background) very well.
Blurring the background lets you bring your subject into focus.
This is an excellent step-up for the photographer who is looking for sharper telephoto shots, and it's great for someone interested in shooting sports or wildlife. It works well, is built with durability in mind, and most importantly, will help you take great photographs.
A tripod was necessary for this tightly-cropped moon shot.
Good thing I was able to step back from this one.
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Recently I got to test out the Panasonic HDC-SD9
high-def memory card camcorder for work. Luckily, I had planned a weekend visit to see my family in Maryland, and my little 5-year-old niece’s Spring ballet recital was on that Saturday. I could shoot a video to remember her by, and the constraints of the environment would be great for testing out the cam.
I played around with the menu settings beforehand to get them to where I wanted. The menu playback was pretty intuitive, and I had it down after about 20 minutes. The SD9 has a
10x optical zoom and 700x digital zoom. I didn't want to accidentally slide into digital zoom and get a fuzzy picture of my niece in a tutu at the recital, so to be on the safe side, I turned it off. I also chose to turn on the optical image stabilization. I didn't trust myself not to shake while filming, and I didn't want a video that induces nausea every time I watch it.
I haven't filmed anything in years — since we owned our old VHS camcorder when I was performing in ballet recitals — but once I got to the auditorium, filming was surprisingly easy. We sat on the left side of the audience so that we could see my niece the best. The SD9 doesn't have a video light, which I guess was good for the people around me, but I found that I didn't need it after the cam assessed the light in the auditorium and suggested that I use a low-light setting.
We were also a little far back, but with the optical zoom I could see my niece as well as if I was in the front row. The zoom slider was conveniently placed on the top of the cam next to my right index finger, and made my zooms gradual and smooth. And with the swivel LCD, I could hold the cam slightly above the tall people in front of me and angle the screen down so that I could still see what I was filming.
The menu toggle was the most disappointing feature about the camcorder. It’s located on the left side of the cam, which made it kind of awkward to use. My hand had to cross in front of the screen during filming to reach it. It was also pretty uncomfortable to operate for a long time — the toggle's very stiff and the raised plastic tended to leave a dent in my finger. The speaker placement also seemed a little odd — right on top of the cam in the middle — and I often found myself covering it with my hand during playback.
I also don’t think I’ll be chucking my digital camera anytime soon. Even though the camcorder boasted a resolution of 1920 x 1080 for digital pictures, the shutter speed was slow. Pictures of my chubby nephew bouncing up and down on the theater chair tended to turn out blurry.
But I do have to applaud the cam's tiny size and light weight. Unlike my sister's larger, heavier hard drive cam, I could tuck the SD9 away in my bag and not even realize that anything extra had been added. The three separate CCDs also really came through — my niece's tutu appeared bright sapphire on film, with warm tones from the lighting and stage that weren't washed out.
My favorite feature was the Optical Image Stabilizer. My hand tended to shake when I was under the pressure of filming, so having the O.I.S. to smooth out the video
was awesome. Best of all, it didn’t degrade the picture quality.
I had originally thought that the 1 hour of filming time on my 8GB SDHC memory card
wouldn’t be enough, but I found that when I got back from Maryland I still had plenty of extra space. I would still probably go ahead and buy a larger SDHC card if I got this cam — at least 16GB — and then carry an extra or two in case.
I loved being able to show my boyfriend a high-def video of my niece's recital on our HDTV when I got back. Every demi-plié and grand jeté was sharp and in focus. However, I've since had some trouble finding the right software to read/decode the AVCHD format on my computer. The software included in the box didn't work for me, and I've heard similar complaints from other reviewers. Since AVCHD is so new, the software hasn't quite caught up with the hardware yet. I would definitely recommend doing a little bit of research before purchasing any camcorder, and possibly even investing in some third-party software if you plan to do any serious editing.
**Note: The screen shot of my niece included with this post is not high-def and does not reflect the quality of video recordings captured with the Panasonic HDC-SD9. In the end, I had to turn my footage into an mpeg file, which is much more compressed. I included this shot, however, because it's a good example of how well the cam performed in a minimal light setting from a distance.
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I’m no photographer, but like everyone else, I take
lots of snapshots so we’ll have reminders of trips, recitals, and birthdays. We always put together an annual photo collage, showing where we went and what we did that
year. It’s good enough for me that we have it recorded — the photos don’t have
to be works of art.
My family loves to travel. We ski, and camp, and go to the
beach as often as we can. This past winter we went to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We borrowed a good camera and took tons of pictures, but I was worried the whole time that we’d drop it in the snow.
Last month, we took the girls to Toronto to see Niagara Falls. Again, we had a loaner camera. Spray from the falls kicked up like crazy. The wetter we got, the more I worried about that camera.
I recently had the chance to try out a new waterproof camera: the Olympus 850 SW. I wrote about the camera for our catalog, and then my friend Dave and I filmed a short video, calling out its features.
To introduce this little camera to my family, I held it under the faucet and freaked them out. It’s also airtight, so we could take it camping or to the beach without stressing about sand or dirt getting inside. And it works in below-freezing temps, so we could confidently take it on the slopes.
I took this picture in the pouring rain:
Here’s a shot of one of our peonies, taken with the camera's macro (close-up) mode:
The 850 SW also takes panoramic pictures. It snaps three simultaneous shots, and then stitches them together inside the camera to create one seamless photo, like this one:
I took advantage of this panorama mode to take pictures of the whole gang at our family reunion a couple weeks back.
All in all, the Olympus 850 SW seemed like an excellent camera to take along on outdoor adventures. My family's a little rough on electronic gear, but this camera was rugged enough to keep up with us.
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I love digital photography. But it has its limits.
I can take hundreds of digital photos, store them on discs or hard drives, and have an exhaustive photo collection of the places I've been and the things I've done. But until recently, sharing "hard copies" of my photos involved walking up the stairs to the home office, loading the printer up with photo paper, downloading the pictures from my camera, and sitting around while they printed out. The Canon Selphy™ CP740 has changed that routine.
This compact printer turns out sharp and colorful 4"x6" pictures on demand with a minimum of fuss and set up. While it comes with software that allows you to connect it to your computer, I've had the most fun using the Selphy as a stand-alone printer. I simply pop the SD card from my camera into the CP740, find the picture I want, and hit "print." In a minute or so I've got a picture in my hands, ready to give to friends or relatives or just to stick on the refrigerator. And since you buy the paper and ink cartridge in a package, you've always got the right amount of ink for the photos you're printing, at a price that's very competitive with regular ink-jet printers or online photo printing services.
At a recent graduation dinner dance at my son's school, I was able to take individual pictures of all of the students, print them out on the CP740, and give each of them a photographic memento at the end of the evening. No waiting around, no emailed JPGs. It was one of the highlights of the event for kids and their parents. A few weeks later I was able to sit down at the dining room table with my son's grandparents and pick out and print the graduation photos they wanted right there and then.
Does the CP740 have limitations? Sure. It only prints 4x6 and wallet-sized pictures and has no editing capabilities. But for a reasonable price, the CP740 delivers great-looking pictures with a minimum of effort. And thanks to its small size, it's portable enough to take along to parties, reunions, or other events. Without a doubt, the Selphy CP740 puts the "snap" back into "snapshots."
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 Just wanted to share a quick note regarding my recent post comparing Klipsch headphones.
I went several days without listening to my Custom-1s, or any other headphones for that matter. Just this afternoon I fired them up on a track from the
album Geogaddi by the trip-hop duo Boards of Canada -- and I was surprised again by how big and punchy
everything sounded, including the bass. So ultimately, I think the Custom-1s hold
their own nicely. If I hadn't ever compared them directly with the Custom-3s, I
probably wouldn't have heard anything missing or lacking at all.
And also, a brief word of advice: with any in-ear headphone, getting the proper fit can have a huge impact on sound quality. Most of these headphones come with an assortment of earbud attachments, and it's worth your time to experiment with them in order to find the ones that create the most comfortable (yet complete) seal inside your ear canal. Otherwise, you may not be experiencing the best sound your 'phones can give you.
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I love it when my friends buy new gear and we all get to
enjoy the benefits. My best friend’s husband just installed a pair of Klipsch® AW-650 outdoor speakers on their back deck, making it the best place to
hang out, by far. 
When Jeff chose these speakers for Brandy, he also had her
daycare kids in mind. Now they can listen to their preschool tunes when they
play outside on the deck and beyond. Instead of positioning the speakers downward,
to bounce the sound off of the deck, Jeff pointed the speakers straight out
towards the swing set and sandbox. You can read more about his setup in my related post on our "Use and Enjoy Your A/V Gear" blog.
One drawback to outdoor sound is that it more easily dissipates into the air. This is where Klipsch’s horn-loaded drivers really work their magic. When you call out to someone from a distance, you cup your hands around your mouth to form a "horn," so you'll be heard. In much the
same way, these drivers more accurately and efficiently send sound to Brandy's deck and back yard.
As I stroll from one end of the deck to the other, I hear changes in volume — some spots are a bit "sweeter" than others. This probably has to do with the way Jeff aimed the speakers outward instead of downward. But overall, the sound is spot-on. I hear plenty of crisp bass, even without a subwoofer. The music is full, precise, and lifelike.
These speakers also look nice. Jeff got white ones to match their white vinyl siding, but it’s also possible to paint the grilles. All of the mounting hardware is included, and Jeff achieved a really clean, wires-out-of-the-way installation.
Although it's early to tell how well the speakers will stand up to the elements, they should be fine. They're designed for outdoor use, with rust-proof, UV-resistant enclosures to weather harsh sun, rain, and snow. Jeff positioned them under eaves, which will surely help. I can say that we’ve had some pretty severe storms in the few weeks since they’ve been mounted, and they’re
still delivering the same awesome sound.
So Jeff's gift to Brandy was perfect — especially since her daycare kids and all her friends get to enjoy her speakers, too. They definitely beat that old boom box she used to put on the picnic table.
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When my old stereo receiver finally gave up the ghost (after 20 years of distinguished service) it was time to hit the store and get another. The home stereo landscape has changed quite a bit since I bought my old Sony. Back then, you bought a stereo receiver for your home system — period. Now a quick look at the product pages at crutchfield.com lists almost 40 multi-channel home theater receivers, and only 10 strictly stereo receivers.
But stereo was what I wanted. My home theater system is downstairs with the TV in the family room, while the stereo receiver is upstairs in the living room/dining room. There's no TV there, and no desire for multi-channel surround sound either. All I need there is a good-sounding stereo receiver that has enough inputs to handle my CD player, turntable, and an auxiliary input for my XM tuner and iPod. The Onkyo TX-8222 fit the bill nicely. 
I was impressed with the TX-8222 from the moment I hooked it up. It's a bit bare-bones as far as features (volume, input selection, balance, bass and treble tone controls, plus a simple remote), but not where it counts — in the sound. That was rock solid. I put one of my favorite test discs, The Spielberg/Williams Collaboration, into my CD player and checked out a few tracks. I enjoyed excellent reproduction of fine details, like the impeccably rendered and intricate brass and woodwind motifs of "Scherzo for Motorcycle and Orchestra," while the startling and sudden dynamic contrasts of "Shark Cage Fugue" were presented with authority. Low-volume passages were consistently full and rich, while louder statements came through without strain or harshness.
Since the Onkyo does most of it's work playing background music, I didn't see any need to spring for it's more high-powered cousin, the TX-8522. Good choice — the 50 watts RMS per channel of the TX-8222 has been powerful enough for dinner and entertaining music, and also for occasionally cranking up a favorite disc when I'm in the mood.
And there are a couple of extra bonuses I plan to take advantage of with the TX-8222. Onkyo sells an iPod dock, the DS-A2x, that comes with its own remote control. Perfect for casual listening with a cup of tea, or for controlling a party mix when we're cooking out. Plus, the TX-8222 features two sets of speaker outputs. I'll be running speaker wire to the deck any weekend now.
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