Info and forum posts by 'Sandy Matthews'

RE: HP Home Cinema Digital Projector £299!!!

If you expect to move up to HD at some point, then yeah, you`re as well going for an HD-capable one. However, I`d expect to pay quite a bit more for a projector that can do this. Also watch out for the various terminology that goes with these TVs and projectors these days - it almost seems designed to confuse :-

[*]Accepts HD inputs - means that the input can be in HD, but the projector / TV may not display in HD. This projector falls into this category
[*]HD Ready - worryingly, this doesn`t even mean that your will get the resolution you expect. HD pictures are typically broadcast at a minimum of 1280 x 720 - however, HD Ready only guarantees that it can display 720 lines, not necessarily 1280 horizontally. Many plasmas and projectors that are HD Ready are actually 1024 x 768

If you want to get the full resolution, look at the quoted resolution, and make sure it`s at least 1280 x 720. If you win the lottery, you can even go for 1920 x 1080.

From my perspective, the projector is only going to be used with non-HD sources (Xbox, PS2, DVD), so the restrictions don`t apply to me, and it`s perfect for my requirements. Also, the prices of these will fall, and the spec will go up, as more HD devices appear, so one approach is to buy a £300 cheapy one today, in the knowledge that when you upgrade to SkyHD, Blu-ray and so on, the HD projectors will probably be £300 cheaper. Note - This approach is known in my house as "SandyMaths" - whereby you decide what you want to buy, and then justify it by building a scenario which makes it seem cost-effective, regardless of how far-fetched said scenario may be....Sandy

RE: HP Home Cinema Digital Projector £299!!!

You`d hook it up to a Xbox 360 using the standard HD cable that comes with the Xbox - 5 phono connectors, 3 for component video plus audio left and right. So you don`t need to buy additional cables. However, bear in mind that it won`t be in high-def, as although the projector can accept 720p and 1080i inputs, it will downscale the picture to the equivalent of 480p

RE: HP Home Cinema Digital Projector £299!!!

I spotted this earlier in the week, but wasn`t sure how much of a bargain it was - apologies for not posting it at the time!

For info, mine arrived yesterday, and I`m very happy with it. It`s quite bulky, but relatively lightweight and nicely designed. Good remote, trivial setup. Got it currently in my smallest room (only 8 feet from lamp to screen) but still getting a great image, I`d say about 5 to 6 feet diagonal from that distance.

My opinions below - although it`s the only projector I`ve owned, so I don`t know how it compares to other ones

The good :-
Colours are really bright and vivid, as clear as my HD LCD television
Works well even at small distance
Quick startup
Very visible - I can run it in daytime (albeit with curtains closed) against a pale green wall and happily sit and watch it
Built in speaker, half-decent output
Good lamp life - quoted at 4,000 hours, seems to be above average

The not-so-good :-
It claims to be "virtually silent" - b0llocks. Quoted at 34dB, not too intrusuve once you`re used to it, but definitely not silent. SImilar noise to an XBox 360
Resolution only 800 x 600, but can support HD inputs up to 1080i (and downscale)
No VGA or DVI input - very much home cinema

At the moment, I`ve got mine hooked up to my Xbox, and it`s awesome. Gaming on such a screen is a totally different experience, and movies are great.
Finally, if buying from eBuyer, you can pay £299.97 for just the projector, or you can pay £299.40 for a bundle including the projector AND a DVD player. From what I can see, it`s higher spec, and better reviewed, than anything close to it`s price range. I`m delighted with mine

Sandy

RE: Nintendo DS Lite £75.90

The site looks OK (although looks can be deceiving). however, it appears to be US-based but willing to ship to the UK. If this is the case, it means that you`re liable for import duty, which would probably be at least £15, probably more. As such, you`re not saving anything over the £89.99 you can pay in Asda over the counter, and you don`t have to wait

cheers,
Sandy

RE: Genus Vizo 1Gb Portable MP4 Player - Was £149.99 Now £49.99+extras

Got one in Stirling Curry`s. Again, had to ask about the case / cables but got them easy enough. Very impressed with the player - even more so when connecting it up to the telly - it plays videos back at (apparently) full DVD resolution, and is compressing them down for the 2" screen in the player

Many thanks to the OP
Sandy

RE: Cello DVD recorder £49.99 in Co-op

Quote:

The units in my local Co-op do not have DV / firewire in for DVCam input!

Yep, the same goes for mine - the spec I listed was from a review I grabbed elsewhere, and sadly inaccurate. However, I`ve played with mine for a couple of days, and very pleased so far. Multi-region out the box, no issues with cheapo DVD+Rs, and the 6 hour recording mode is far better than I expected.

Sandy

RE: Cello DVD recorder £49.99 in Co-op

My co-op is in Stirling, central Scotland. However, when I looked for reviews on the player, I found a few comments on other forums mentioning the same thing - so it`s more than just mine (but may not be nationwide)

Cello DVD recorder £49.99 in Co-op

My local co-op is selling the Cello DR-810 DVD recorder for £49.99. I believe it`s nationwide - ours is just a wee corner shop, so I`d expect the rest to have them as well.

The spec looks not bad - DVD+R/+RW, RGB scart out (and I think in), s-video in, optical out, DV / firewire in for DVCam input, up to 6 hours recording, progressive scan output, all the usual stuff

cheers,
Sandy

RE: woolworths roboraptor £49.99 and robosapien £43.99 in store

Also available on-line here

Also got a couple of ForceFX lightsabres (the ones that light up authentically, and have motion sensors to make accurate swishing and clanging noises) for £49.99. Darth vader or Anakin Skywalker

Sandy

RE: 26

I agree about the Sky picture. I`ve just got a LG 32" LCD as well as the Dell, and the same applies. I`ve tried it with hi-def input from a PC through DVI, and through a high-def xBox through components, and a DVD player, and the picture is gorgeous. On Sky, though, I think it`s more that the LCD shows up every single flaw and artefact from the compression used. On the menu screens, Sky is sharp, and also some channels seem far better than others, probably down to the bandwidth they`re allocating.

The recommendation for viewing distance for non-high-def TV on a high-def LCD is 3 times the diagonal length, in this case 3 x 26" = 78" = 6` 6". This pretty much seems to apply in my house, my chair`s about 6 feet from the telly, and I can see artefacts, whereas my wife is further back, and it`s all great from there.

Sandy

RE: 26

Looks like the offer is over, the link no longer works. However, mine arrived yesterday, very pleased indeed. Many thanks to the OP

Sandy

RE: Argos-Fog machine reduced..

A bit late, but many thanks to the OP - scared the bejeesus out of many a trick-or-treater tonight by triggering it as they got to the front door.....

Sandy

Linksys Wireless Media Adapter - £17.99 + P&P at eBuyer

No experience of this particular product, but I`ve paid a lot more for products that were a lot worse!

LinkSys wireless-b media adapter, streams music and photos (but no video) wirelessly from your PC. Connects to your TV (for pictures and menu screens), and either to the TV or your hi-fi for audio output. Complete with credit-card remote.

I got a Hauppauge equivalent a year ago, a bargain at £50 but without the wireless capability, so one with built in wireless for less than twenty quid surely must be a steal....

Link here

cheers,

Sandy

RE: Choices.com - Babylon 5 Boxsets - ALL series at £17.99 each

It`s choicesdirect.com, but thanks!

Direct link here

Sandy

RE: Pro Evolution Soccer 5 - £14.99 at HMV & free p&p

Looks like it`s in the process of being fixed. It`s still £14.99, but if you add it to your basket, it comes up at £29.99. However, mine`s still appearing at £14.99 in my order history, so hopefully should be OK

Sandy

RE: Pro Evolution Soccer 5 - £14.99 at HMV & free p&p

Great spot - ordered the XBox version, it`s available at the same price here

Sandy

RE: Sin City UMD 99p

Sorry, but you have to trade in a PSP game, not a PS2 one. Not such a bargain any more....

Sandy

RE: PSP & `free` movie £179.99 or PSP & 2 games £204..

Argos seem to have stock available today. You can reserve it online and pick it up at the store. Checked the Stirling store and seemed to have plenty

RE: Cheap 1GB Sandisk Pro Duo Memory Stick - Great for K750i

The Jackal said :-

Quote:
I really think ebay should have an extra column with the total price.
Come on ebay listen to ya customers.

Did you know that when Microsoft asked a group of customers what they`d like to see in the next version of Office, 80% of the requests were for features already in place? People have a tendancy to just complain about missing features rather than look for them :D

In an eBay search or browse listing ;
[list] [*] Select "Customise display" on the far right, just above the items;
[*] Add the "Postage Cost" item from the Available column to the columns to display;
[*] Press the "save" button [/list]

you now see the total postage cost alongside the item cost - sure, you`ve still got to add the 2 numbers together, but is should do what you need.

Sandy

RE: Cheap Play Equipment at B&Q

Hi all,

just had a call from B&Q to say sorry, they can`t now get me a table tennis table. Delivery was due tomorrow. However, they`ve taken my cash ( 2 weeks ago), and according to their own Ts & Cs :-

Quote:
B&Q cannot accept your order until you have paid for it in full (including applicable delivery charges). Upon payment, we will confirm acceptance of your order by e-mail which will be sent to the e-mail address you provide on your order details. Whether or not you receive the e-mail, our acceptance of your order will create a legally binding contract between us. We reserve the right not to supply you at our discretion.

I read this as stating that we have a legally binding contract, that they`re now in breach of. They have chosen not to exercise their right to supply me at their discretion (by accepting my cash and confirming my order), and the table is still on their site at the same price (albeit out of stock) so it`s clearly not a pricing error. Any amateur lawyers got any ideas?

Sandy

RE: PSP - Import with Free Shipping!

Sony are vague on the dead pixels issue - they say if there`s an "unacceptable" number they`ll replace, but who knows if it`s your definition of unacceptable, or Sony`s? Personally, I`d agree with going somewhere that will replace - such as Argos, who will take it back within 16 days regardless

Sandy

RE: Woolies Laptop £399 half price

My 2p-worth :- I`m just replacing my Medion laptop (courtesy of Dell and Reestit Mutton - cheers RM!). It`s less than 18 months old, and the plastic has cracked so badly that the hinge on the screen no longer works, so it`s getting more and more broken every time I open it. I could get it fixed, but I suspect it`s not worth spending the cash, as they`d just replace the whole screen and charge me a couple of hundred as it`s out of warrenty. By all means, go for this bargain; but be aware of the build quality before parting with cash!

Sandy

RE: PSP - Import with Free Shipping!

Nice idea, but you`re still eligible for import duty, which will probably be around £40 all in. Taking this into account, it`s about the same price as the UK one will be. Also, buying from the UK gives you better protection against dead pixels - if you buy it here, then Sony or your retailer are likely to replace it - if you grey-import it, you won`t want to courier it back to the far east, and Sony will tell you where you can stick your dead pixels....

All said, though, it`s a fantastic piece of kit, and the video playback is as good as any portable DVD i`ve seen;.

For info, if you pre-order it in Argos, you get £100 worth of vouchers - although I suspect they`ll be of the "save £10 on a £50 spend" variety

Sandy

RE: 2-way radios - £8.73!!!!!

Picked mine up today, very impressed. Tried them over half a mile, nice clear reception. Very pleased, especially at the price. Now just waiting to try out the fog machine - not sure I can wait till halloween......

...oh, and many thanks to the OP

Sandy

This item was edited on Tuesday, 19th July 2005, 19:41

RE: [GC] Cheap(NTSC) RE4, Mario Golf, Mortal Kombat (Freeloader)

Out of the box, a UK GC won`t play US / Jap games. However, you can get a disc called Freeloader which will let you play them on any `cube. Bear in mind, though, that it`ll probably still play in NTSC, so you`ll need to ensure that your TV can handle it - most can, but always worth checking.

Cheers,

Sandy

RE: Cheap Play Equipment at B&Q

Great spot, got myself the swing set, a table football game and the full-size table-tennis set - £400 down to £100 - fantastic bargains.

All I need now is a bigger garden - anyone know where I can get one cheap?

Sandy

RE: Which MP3 Player?

I`m with the previous posters in a couple of areas.

Firstly, I can`t really see past an iPod if you`ve got the cash. True, they are more expensive, but they really are the dog`s when it comes to design and usability. The other ones I`ve tried are all good enough, but they always feel like those cheap Rubik`s Cubes you used to get - they do exactly the same thing, and are cheaper, but they always feel as if they`re not quite as smooth and elegant to use as they could be.

Secondly about the need for size. If you plan to put an entire music collection across to the thing, then by all means go for the biggest you can. However, I`ve got a huge music collection (60+gb) of stuff that I`ve legitimately bought; I loved it all at the time of purchase; but I do find now that a lot of it is stuff that I`m unlikely to listen to. If I put the whole load on shuffle-play through iTunes on my PC, I find that I typically skip past 4 or 5 tracks before getting to one I`m keen to listen to. What I now do is only copy across ones that I think I`ll listen to to my iPod, and this easily fits in 10Gb. This might just be me - either being overly fussy, or having found out too late that large parts of my CD collection are crap - but I suspect it`s the same for most people. Before deciding on which one to buy, give some serious thought to how you`re most likely to use it

Sandy

RE: Download Unlimited tracks from NAPSTER For £10 a month!!

Sorry to be the one who seems to be pi%%ing on the picnic here, but normal downloaded tracks from Tescos etc. do allow you to burn to a CD, as part of the rights imposed by the DRM software. The same goes for Napster Lite, where you pay the 79p or so per track - you can burn them to your heart`s content. But this doesn`t apply to the Napster subscription packages, where the DRM solely allows playback, not burning. From the Napster FAQ :-

Quote:
8. What if I just want to buy songs or albums to burn to CD or transfer to a compatible MP3 player?
You can always use Napster Light, Napster`s 79p music store, to purchase tracks for 79p and albums from £7.95. Once purchased, you can keep this music on your PC forever, burn it to CD or transfer to a compatible MP3 player. You can get Napster Light when you download and register for Napster. Napster and Napster To Go members can also purchase songs for as low as 68p each with Napster Track Packs. Click here to see why we think a Membership is such a good deal.

The only option I can see is to use a package which records the output of your soundcard, such as Virtuoso? This will take the output stream and re-encode it as an MP3 or WAV file. Downsides to this are
[list] [*] It will take 4 minutes to re-code a 4 minute song
[*] By re-encoding, you`ve created a 2nd generation copy which will be of lower quality (although it may not be noticable, to be honest)
[*] There`s a constant battle between DRM and utility vendors to close such loopholes - it may be that even this isn`t feasible any more [/list]

Standard disclaimer - this is all based on what I`ve read, and not on practical experience, so by all means prove me wrong! I bought my first ever online album this week from iTunes, and immediately burned-and-ripped to create non-DRM MP3s, and it was remarkably easy

Sandy

RE: Download Unlimited tracks from NAPSTER For £10 a month!!

I don`t believe so, but it might be worth speculating a tenner to try it out. Napster run a separate service, Napster Lite, which is a traditional model (i.e. you pay per track) and this does let you burn to a CD, so presumably they have different levels of Digital Rights Management (DRM) on the tracks depending on how you purchase them.

If you do give it a shot, be sure and let us all know how successful or otherwise it is!

Sandy

RE: Download Unlimited tracks from NAPSTER For £10 a month!!

Sadly, it`s not quite as good as that.You can download as much as you want, agreed; but the protection on the music you download means that you can only play it back if you are still a Napster subscriber. As soon as you cancel, you lose the ability to play the music you`ve downloaded. Also, you can only copy the music to certain MP3 players, and presumably they can enforce the same protection - plus, this subscription costs £14.99 a month. So yes, you get unlimted music for a tenner / fifteen a month, but you have to keep paying to use it. If you typically spend at least this much on buying music, then it`s still a good deal, and you can try stuff you wouldn`t necessarily have spent money on, so you can improve the quality of music you buy.

Sandy